All I want for Christmas is you
by animal.luver22
Summary: Artemis is doing a very unusual thing - he is throwing a Christmas party at Fowl Manor. But this won't be any ordinary party...especially with both Holly and Minerva coming along...And what happened to Opal? A Holly/Artemis romance/adventure set after TTP
1. A little Distraction

Disclaimer: I do not own Artemis Fowl or any of the Characters in this plot. They belong to Eoin Colfer, not me. Happy reading – there is much more to come!

**The LEP Training facility, Haven City, The Lower Elements**

HOLLY lashed out at a holographic target, her hand clenched into a tight fist. The hologram of a burly gnome flickered and died. She looked round in satisfaction.

Following her jaunt to the past to rescue Jayjay from Opal Koboi, she was being reassessed on her efficiency and skills when on normal Recon missions. Every test so far she had aced without a problem, and she only had one more assignment to go. She didn't know what the last assignment would be, but still felt confident she could defeat anything thrown at her.

_If only I had my Neutrino with me_, Holly thought. As if on cue, a panel on the holo-room slid back to reveal a Neutrino blaster. Foaly had upgraded his holograms in such a way that you could actually feel contact from them, only not as severe.

Holly picked up the gun and expertly swung it into its holster on her hip. At this prescise moment a young mud man seemed to flicker out of nowhere. His back was turned to her so she couldn't make out the facial features, only the back of a very expensive looking suit. 'You have ten minutes to defeat your opponent', said a robotic voice 'Your time starts...NOW'. _Okay, _thought Holly confidently_. It's just a hologram. This should be a piece of dwarf cake._

But her attitude changed as soon as the human turned around. It was all too familiar. The slim pianists fingers, the unnaturally pale skin and the mismatched eyes. The eyes.

'D'Arvit!' swore Holly under her breath.

'Ah, Captain Holly Short. I'm glad you could join me.' Artemis Fowl's eyes were cold and expressionless, both blue and brown.

'You have precisely nine minutes left' said the robotic voice.

Holly just stood there and stared at the hologram.

Suddenly Artemis darted to her left and dealt a swift kick to her stomach. She fell backwards, landing squarely on her backside, looking like a complete idiot. The Artemis she knew couldn't kick a stationary beanbag without missing once or twice.

Hologram-Artemis stood over her, taunting. 'Aren't you meant to be in the LEP? Some recon officer you are!'

Holly drew out her Neutrino from its holster and aimed it at Artemis's chest. Her finger hovered over the trigger, then dropped. She couldn't do it to Artemis, hologram or not.

Where did this attitude come from? Wondered Holly. Two years ago she would have shot him, no doubt. While she was thinking this though, Artemis wasn't being so generous. He crept round to her side and whispered in her ear. 'Seeing as I don't have Butler here with me, I'll have to improvise' . He used his sharp nail to prod the pressure point on the side of Holly's neck. Unconsciousness was almost instant. The hologram of Artemis disappeared.

_Do I love him?_ Thought Holly as consciousness slipped away. Then, _I think I do._

**Fowl Manor, Dublin, Ireland**

The real Artemis Fowl was in his usual place – sitting at his desk in his study, surrounded by PowerBooks and computer monitors. A projector usually threw large videos of news stations all over the world on a white screen, but this time it was covered in pictures of Christmas parties. Artemis studied each one in turn, commenting.

'What are your thoughts on this one, Butler?' He pointed towards a lively scene on the computer where people danced the Irish jig.

'Don't you think its a bit...well, not your taste?'

'No, it is not', agreed Artemis. 'But it will be fun for the guests'

Butler sighed. 'Do you really expect to be able to get all those scientists dancing the Irish jig to jazzy Christmas music?'

Artemis frowned. 'No, I didn't think of that'

Butler groaned. Master Artemis normally thought of everything – But anything social was a disaster for him. So as soon as Artemis had offered to help his mother plan a Christmas party, he was completely out of his depth.

'Look Butler, I know you think this is a bad idea, but maybe it would be good for me to do something social. I'll have to start at some point'.

'I never thought I'd hear those words coming out of your mouth', grinned Butler.

'Well, there's a first for everything' Artemis replied. 'An anyway, I'm not only inviting scientists. Mother and Father are bringing a few of their friends along.' Butler raised an eyebrow. '_Not_ criminal friends'

'That makes it so much better' muttered Butler under his breath.

'What did you–' Artemis petered off mid-sentence. 'Butler, what about this...'

Butler strode over to his charge's side. 'No, Artemis', said Butler. 'Not that. Definitely not'

'Oh yes', said Artemis, grinning. '_That._'

Butler almost fainted. And as we all know, that's no mean feat.


	2. Conflicting thoughts

COMMANDER KELP'S OFFICE, LEP HEADQUARTERS

Captain Holly Short woke up with a headache. If you can call feeling like your head is about to explode a headache.

'Ah, she wakes', said a voice. 'Although I would rather stay asleep if I were her. Getting defeated by a mud boy! And a scrawny one at that! Recon won't let her forget that in a hurry.'

'Holly', whispered another. 'Wake up'

'Foaly?' Muttered Holly, her eyes half open. 'That little joke of yours wasn't funny'.

'What little joke?' Asked Foaly, feigning innocence.

'Using Artemis as my final opponent', shouted Holly

'Oh, that little test?'

'Yes. That _test_ '

'You have to understand me on this, Holly' He shooed the other fairy out of the room. 'You and Artemis are getting too close. Humans and Fairies don't mix, you should know that.'

'How do you know that? How do you know that we aren't just friends?'

'Because we saw the way you reacted', Commander Trouble Kelp appeared from a dark corner of the room. Holly hadn't even known he was there. 'We could see it in your eyes'

'Great, so you were watching too'

'Unless you have forgotten Captain, I am your Commander.'

'I know', she said sadly. 'But Artemis and I are just good friends. You wouldn't want to hurt a friend.'

Commander Kelp glanced at Foaly. 'You know, she may have a point'.

'But-', Foaly started to object. 'Oh, all right'

'You are dismissed.' Trouble Kelp said. 'But watch it'

Holly pushed through the door into the corridor. She had lied to her Commander and friend to protect a mud boy. There had been only one other case of a fairy-human friendship, and it hadn't ended well. Unless you want to count seventeen blanket mind-wipes, a face reconstruction and a burning building as a good result.

Holly found her brow wet with perspiration, almost a first for her, especially considering she had done worse things in her high risk job. She wished she hadn't been so stupid. Becoming friends with a criminal genius. A criminal genius that KIDNAPPED her. She felt a tear make its way down her cheek. She had betrayed the people.

'Holly!' A voice broke through her emotions. She turned around. 'Holly, I'm so sorry...I thought-' Foaly paused. 'Holly, are you crying?'

'No', Holly stammered. 'It's...Allergies'

Foaly didn't look convinced, but continued. 'You can use these', he pushed a small set of wings, obviously new, into her arms.

'Won't Trouble-I mean Commander miss them?'

Foaly shook his head. 'they are so new they haven't been registered yet. Quick, go, before Commander Kelp sees them.'

Holly rushed down the corridor and out into the Tara shuttle port. The magma flares weren't due for another hour, giving her enough time to fly up the chute into the fresh evening air. She smiled, then pushed off into the chute.

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND

Artemis Fowl The Second walked briskly down the hallway. Butler walked behind him, matching his stride step-for-step. In his hand Artemis held what looked like a roughly constructed transmitter.

'She's there', Artemis observed.

'_Who's _There?' Asked Butler, exasperated.

'You aren't coming on this trip', said Artemis, ignoring Butler's question. 'I need the keys to the Bentley'

Butler opened his mouth to object, but closed it just as quickly.

'You're up to no good', he muttered.

'Of course', replied Artemis, eyes twinkling mischievously. He took the keys and opened the front door of the manor. Automatic floodlights lit up the driveway and the sleek black car.

'Remember to not take her over a hundred', Butler warned. Then smiling, 'Oh, and don't crash into any low-flying fairies on the way.'

'I'll try', grinned Artemis, putting the keys in the ignition.

He eased the Bentley down the driveway and out onto the main road. Glancing at the transmitter sitting on the dashboard, he turned round the car and headed towards Tara.


	3. Pizza, pizza

CHUTE E1, TARA, IRELAND

Holly smiled as she felt the chute winds rippling against her cheeks. She didn't perform a pre-flight check, just jumping straight into the chute with her adrenalin pumping, not knowing whether the compact wings strapped to her back would work or not. Although Holly's specialty was riding the flares in the LEP shuttle pods, she enjoyed flying just as much, if not more. There was no bulky pod or Foaly's annoying whine in her ear, just her and a set of wings. She knew she would get in trouble for diving, but the thrill was too hard to resist. As the earth's core rushed up to greet her, she flicked on the throttle and hoped it would work.

For a few anxious moments the wings did nothing, then hummed into life. Holly grinned as they propelled her towards the spot of light far above. When she was doing this she forgot about everything – Artemis, Foaly, Commander Kelp and the LEP, everything that crowded her life with uncertainty and confusion. Answerless questions vanished and her head was clear, free of both things she cared about and hated. She was once again no one but herself.

_Isn't this odd,_ she thought. _I've done this so many times but the exhilaration never leaves me. _Holly slowed down as she neared the Tara shuttle port, which was buzzing with fairies annoyed with the shuttle port official.

'But this is an annual meeting', objected one. 'Annual means once a year. We need to pick up the other members!'

'Yeah, He's right', said another. 'We can't miss this!'

'What, annual fried pizza day? If you try jumpin' that chute now you'll be as fried as the pizza. Wait for the next shuttle an' you might actually get there'. The shuttle port official shook his head in frustration then scowled at Holly.

'Oh, look what the chute coughed up', he said. 'That blasted female recon officer again.'

Holly just stared at him.

'Wadda ya want?' he asked. 'An' make it snappy coz I gotta sort out this lot'. He gestured toward the annoyed tourists.

'I want', said Holly. 'A visa to the surface'

'I haven't got a message from the Probation office yet'

'No, I want a normal visa'

'Really?' He asked, suddenly intrigued. 'Why is that?'

'None of your business. Now, can you get me one?'

He looked at her suspiciously for a moment. 'Of course', he grumbled, tapping away at his computer. He printed out a slip of paper and handed it to her. 'Twenty-four hours, that's all you get'

'Okay.' Holly grabbed the visa slip and shoved it into her pocket. Smiling at the angry tourists, she walked towards the concealed entrance to the surface, hidden by a holographic bush.

'Okay surface', she said. 'Here I come'

SOMEWHERE NEAR TARA, IRELAND

Artemis slammed his foot on the brakes as a minivan labelled 'Melvin's Pizza' pulled out in front of him. He swore as the Bentley's bonnet scraped against the back door of the van. Artemis was certain Butler would have laughed at him if he were there, seeing as Artemis generally thought swearing was crude and completely unnecessary. There was now a deep scratch set into the Bentley's paintwork, shining silver against black. Two figures in red aprons stepped out of the minivan and strode up to the car.

Really, Artemis was underage and shouldn't have learnt to drive until he was about seventeen. But on the command of his father, Butler had taught him to drive as soon as his slim figure could reach the pedals. The two pizza men had obviously noticed this as they instantly started to frown.

'He's a kid!'

'Yeah! He shouldn't be driving!'

'Watta you doing, kiddo?'

Artemis slipped on a pair of dark glasses and slid down the window. 'How may I help you, gentlemen?' He asked, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

Although the men were clearly taken aback by the authority in his voice, they continued speaking as normally as possible. 'Well first, aren't you underage? You got a licence?'

Artemis produced a laminated driver's licence (a clever fake) out of his pocket and showed it to the two men. 'As you may well realise' He said 'I am twenty-five years old, and do not appreciate being belittled by pizza men.'

He watched as shock clouded their faces. 'S-sorry...I...we didn't realise'.

'So', continued Artemis. ' I suspect you have come asking for insurance on my part. If you drive – your car is still working – down this road for a few miles, you will find a place called Fowl Manor. My bodyguard will answer the door and help you in some way or another.'

The pizza men, dim by most standards, walked straight back to their van and jumped back inside. Turning around, they accelerated and headed towards Fowl Manor.

Artemis smiled inwardly. _I've still got it_, he thought.

Now the obstacle had been removed, he checked the tracker and drove further towards Tara.

Fifteen minutes later, a battered Bentley pulled up on the side of the road. A full moon shone above his head, casting light on the Irish countryside. A cow munched grass nearby, and a lone bird twittered. Artemis concentrated on the small pile of shrubbery. Suddenly, it flickered and a haze appeared above it. It hovered then materialised into a dark, lithe figure, with definite adult proportions but childlike in height.

'Holly?'

'Artemis?', asked Holly. 'Is that you?'

'Yes', said the Irish boy gratefully. He didn't fancy accidentally bumping into another fairy instead.

Holly strode up to him and looked around once. 'Sorry Arty', she whispered, then punched him square in the face.

'Wha-' , was the last thing he said before he hit the ground, unconscious.


	4. Forgetting The Past

OUTSIDE CHUTE E1, TARA, IRELAND

Artemis woke up feeling groggy. His thoughts were just unscrambling, but he still noticed Holly's hand on his chest, magic sparking and healing the bruise where she had punched him. As soon as his head had cleared he jumped up and scowled at her.

'I come to invite you to a Christmas party and you punch me in the head. What is wrong with you?'

'Firstly,' started Holly, 'You have been tracking me'.

'No I haven't,' Artemis said feebly, although they both knew he was lying. Holly looked pointedly towards the transmitter on the Bentley's dashboard. 'And point number two?'

Holly explained the holographic mishap, but skipped out the _love_ part. Artemis didn't need to find out her feelings for him yet.

'But that wasn't actually _me_'

'I know', Holly sighed. 'But it caused me so much trouble I couldn't resist'

'Apology accepted', said Artemis.

'That wasn't an apology', smiled Holly. 'Tracking me like that...'

'Look, I am sorry about that...blip in the plan. But it had to be done'

'Plan?' Asked Holly warily.

'Yes, plan.'

Holly raised an eyebrow. 'It's all plans with you. Everything you do has to be planned in some way or another'

Artemis sighed. 'I know. But as I mentioned before, I've come to invite you to a Christmas party'

Holly looked at him incredulously . 'Artemis Fowl the great criminal mastermind asking a fairy to come to a Christmas party. Somehow I don't think that's what you came to ask me about.'

Artemis looked hurt. 'You know I've changed'

'Who says you won't go back to your old ways?'

'True, but I wish you'd trust me more'

'After you lied to my face? I don't think so'

Artemis stood up, looking angry. 'Now who's making false promises! You said we could leave the past in the past and forget about it'

Now it was Holly's turn to look angry. 'I know what I said, but its hard leaving the past in the past when your trust has been shattered. You said that you didn't think I'd do it otherwise, even though deep down, you knew I would do anything for you. Maybe Foaly and Commander Kelp are right. Humans and fairies don't mix.'

Artemis shook his head sadly. 'You don't know how much I regret lying to you'

'How do I know you regret it?'

'Look into my eyes and tell me I don't hold any remorse'

Holly looked into Artemis's sad mismatched eyes. 'I forgive you,' she said. 'I don't know what's wrong with me...I've been so emotional lately'

Artemis rubbed his nose, which was still throbbing despite Holly's magic. 'Still, why did you have to sock me one? I've received enough punches from you already'

Holly sighed. 'I really don't know. As I said, I've been feeling so emotional lately.'

'Artemis came up and gave her an awkward hug, trying to comfort her. Holly pulled away, laughing.

'You, mud boy, are the worst hugger I've ever met'

''Hugger' isn't a word'

'Oh, lighten up'

'I try,' he sighed. 'Are you coming to the party then?'

'I'll think about it. When is it anyway?'

'Well, obviously on the 25thof December, starting at 6:00pm'

'Today's the 20th,' mused Holly, 'So it's about five days from now' She glanced at her moonometer. 'D'Arvit! It's midnight already!'

'So technically it's the 21st'', said Artemis. 'So there are only four days until the party'

'Perfectionist,' muttered Holly.

_Here goes, _thought Artemis nervously.

He started to lean towards her, closer, closer...

And found Holly's finger blocking his lips from kissing her.

'No, mud boy,' she said, almost regretfully. 'I meant what I said. Your elf-kissing days are over'

And with that she kicked off into the air.

Artemis allowed himself a dangerous grin.

'No, Holly' He said quietly. 'They aren't over quite yet'

And they weren't.

Holly landed under an old oak 5 miles away from Tara. She cradled her head in her hands. She was completely torn between two things; Artemis and The People. Being with Artemis could ruin her career, make her an outcast among the people and lose some of her fairy friends – but being without him caused her to be moody and irrational. For once Holly Short was completely out of her depth.


	5. Pure Embarassment

Hey everyone! I try not to add author notes to the pages so you get pure story, but I think it's important that I tell you the last chapter has changed as the Christmas party has been moved to Boxing Day. Thanks to my reviewer who pointed out that most Christmas parties are held on Boxing Day (people are generally too busy on Christmas day). Also, I will be slowly updating previous chapters to sound more like Eoin Colfer's style of writing. Enjoy!

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND

Days pass by quickly, decided Artemis on the morning of Christmas Eve. True, the party wasn't until Boxing Day, but Artemis had organised troops of party specialists and interior designers to redecorate the manor for the occasion. Now there was not a speck of dust that hadn't been evaluated, coloured, trimmed and polished in every way possible. A long tablecloth had been spread over the banquet table and the house was rimmed with fairy lights and candles. A single statue stood in the centre of the circular driveway, dominating even against the manor's bulk. This is where Artemis sat now, next to his two brothers who were squirming and fidgeting against the base of the statue.

'This _boring,' _said Beckett, a tad unnecessarily.

'I know it may be boring now,' replied Artemis. 'but when you're older you will want to escape the excitement for a bit'.

'Old people boring,' replied Beckett. 'That right Myles?'

But Myles, Artemis's other twin brother, wasn't even listening. Instead, he was studying a worm who was unfortunate enough to find itself in his grasp. He stretched it experimentally.

'Myles! Put that worm down!' Ordered Angeline Fowl, hurrying down the driveway. 'How would you like to be stretched like that?'

Artemis sighed. Myles was starting to turn into a mini-Artemis, only before he had met the fairies that had changed his life. Ruthless, annoying and patronising. With a pang Artemis remembered when he had kidnapped Holly and how really, Myles was doing the same thing only to a worm.

'Don't torture him!' shouted Artemis. Myles dropped the worm, surprised. Artemis jumped up, a little surprised himself at the tone he had used with his brother. After all, Myles was only young and probably had no idea what pain he was inflicting on the worm anyway. Angeline stared at him, eyes wide.

'Can I just talk to Arty for a moment?' She asked the twins. They shouted in delight at their unexpected release and instantly started racing down the hill to annoy some landscape designers. 'I knew you'd changed,' she started. 'But not that much'

Artemis shrugged in what he hoped was an indifferent manner.

'You actually seemed to care for an animal for once. And a tiny worm at that'

'I know' he said, then quickly changed the subject. 'What do you think of the party planning so far?'

'I love it! It's beautiful!' She produced a pink-and-silver slip of laminated paper. 'And I love the invitations!'

'I got Juliet to design them,' he replied.

'They suit the theme very nicely,' she suddenly looked curious. 'What were you doing there anyway?' she asked, nodding towards the base of the statue where Artemis had been only minutes before.

'Just thinking', Artemis mumbled, a little guiltily.

'No you weren't,' Angeline replied, striding over to the statue. Concealed behind a moulded Angel was a small stash of books.

'Romance books!' exclaimed Angeline. She opened one at a page that Artemis had marked with a small piece of paper. 'Are you serious?'

Artemis turned bright red. She had opened it at a kissing scene. An awkward silence followed.

'Minerva or Holly?' she asked brightly. Artemis looked at her, confused. 'Well, you obviously like one of them' she explained.

Artemis squirmed slightly. He didn't enjoy open confrontation on relationships. 'What makes you think that?' he asked weakly.

'Don't think I don't know,' answered Angeline, laughing. 'Your father was just as bad. He almost bought out the whole library trying to find way to impress me'

Artemis grimaced. 'I didn't anticipate anyone finding them'

'Sorry,' she said, not sounding very apologetic. I have to go now – hairdressing appointment'. Artemis watched as she made her way up the manor steps. He cleared his throat noisily. 'What is it?' Angeline asked, turning around.

'My, um...', Artemis stammered, not believing he just said 'um'.

'Oh, yes,' smiled Angeline, handing him the book. As she started back up the steps she called back 'I hope all goes well with Holly or Minerva'

Artemis was left standing in the middle of the driveway, a romance book in hand.

PARADIZO CHATEAU, NICE, FRANCE

Minerva Paradizo was lying on a lounger near a beautifully clear pool. Light from the midday sun danced across the ripples in the water and nearby she could hear wind rustling in the thick trees that surrounded her family's holiday home. A maid hurried up, carrying a tray with the days mail. Of the array of Christmas party invitations, only one caught her eye. It was a pale pink in colour and displayed a large Irish stamp. She picked it up.

'Do you want to view the rest?' asked the maid.

'_Non,' _she replied 'That won't be necessary'

The maid scurried off. Minerva handled the invitation gingerly. _Is it him?_ She wondered.

Her eyes flicked over the words;

_You are cordially invited to a Christmas party to be held at Fowl Manor._

_The theme is Christmastime Love, so you are welcome to bring someone very special to you._

_The party will start on the 26t at 6:00pm sharp, but you may arrive later if it is more convenient._

_Drinks and food are provided._

_See you there!_

'Check my schedule for the 26th' she ordered. Then, to herself, 'I'll be there'


	6. DNA Dwarf

Remember everyone; this story comes after the time paradox! So I recommend you read that first!

Holly Short woke up on Christmas day feeling nothing. Adult Fairies rarely celebrated Christmas day – they didn't care much for the exuberant parties held by mud men. Nor did they look forward to getting presents. The only Fairies that seemed to take Christmas seriously were the younger ones. So Holly woke up feeling fairly unexcited. The only thing that sparked the slightest bit of interest was Artemis's party – and she was still in two minds about going anyway. Disguising as a human would be no problem after the mysterious package that had arrived a day earlier. Upon opening it – god knows how it got from Fowl Manor to Haven – was a pair of fake rounded ears constructed by memory latex and a pink-and-silver party invitation. So when boxing day had come around she was still undecided._ Recon has been pretty quiet lately_, reasoned one side of Holly.

_But criminals don't work around schedules, _Another part of her said.

She slipped on her standard Recon Jumpsuit and regulation boots, checking her hair in the mirror. Another thing was bugging her too. It was just a little thought niggling at the back of her mind, but there nevertheless. It had been puzzling her for ages, ever since the pixie had been buried under the debris of the seventh Kraken and miraculously escaped.

_What happened to Opal Koboi? _ _Where is she now?_

Holly grabbed a _Pip n' co _Supa shake ™ and charged out the door. The Supa Shakes had only been on the market for a few weeks, but had already built up an excellent reputation as _the_ best way to make you energetic, strong and wide-awake. Holly had been sceptical at first, but she had to admit they tasted good. And oddly enough, she swore they had made her taller.

Ten minutes later she arrived at police plaza, to find Trouble Kelp standing by the front door. He looked worried.

'Captain Short, you're late _again _and we have a psycho dwarf wandering around Shanghai. Suit up now and get to the surface. Foaly will fill you in'

'Yes, commander sir. Right away, sir,' Holly wasn't surprised by the urgency in his voice; Shanghai was so busy a dwarf running about the place could be noticed by thousands of people. She hurried down the narrow corridor towards Operations. Foaly was sitting there, looking out of character, chewing his bottom lip.

'Ok, Short, suit up. Don't worry about wings – they're built in.' While Holly slipped on the shimmer suit Foaly brought up a 3-D virtual diagram of a shanghai shopping mall. 'Ok, you've got only one chance at this. The situation in a nutshell: A lone dwarf is heading towards the food court of-'

'What?'

'Some Chinese name...anyway, it translates as 'big mall''

Holly burst into peals of laughter. 'Big mall! Trust the mud men to point out the obvious!'

'Yes, but that's beside the point. Anyway, this mall seems to be in the middle of a grand opening at the moment, and the stupid dwarf is going to tunnel right into the middle of it!'

'That sounds a bit like Mulch Diggums. But it can't be – he turned good'

'I agree, last time I heard from him he was catching criminals with Doodah Day'

'Hmmm...' Holly said thoughtfully. 'Is there any way to find out?'

'Of course,' snorted Foaly. 'What do you take me for?'

'A pompous Centaur' Grinned Holly. 'A very _unfit_ pompous Centaur.'

'I know _that_,' He said, a little hurt. 'But luckily for us, that unfit, pompous Centaur updated the underground sensors while you were chasing demons in limbo. Every one is now equipped with a tagging device, a miniature seismograph, a DNA and particle scanner _and_ a wireless, impossible to intercept connection right to the LEP operations mainframe' He gestured around him.

'Just in case you don't remember, we don't have much time'

Foaly continued, not fazed by Holly's interruption. 'Anyway, this dwarf accidentally swallowed one and...well, _ejected _it out the other end. So the sensor is still buried in the earth, where it should be, and picked up the dwarfs DNA when it was swallowed. So now we have the DNA which can be cross-referenced with anyone we want. So, I compared Diggum's DNA with the collected DNA and _voila_'

'And...Is it Diggums?'

'I'll explain as you go. Now...Fly!'


	7. Grim Reaper

Can all you readers please accept my apologies for being so slow getting this out – my other pieces of work have been distracting me, meaning I haven't written any Artemis Fowl fanfiction for four months! I will try to get out more chapters quicker next time!

SOMEWHERE UNDER SHANGHAI, CHINA

Mulch Diggums was experiencing stomach problems. Not the best thing to be happening when you are several thousand feet below the surface of the earth.

He adjusted his direction, trying not register the pain deep in his stomach. At least the scent distracted him. His highly sensitive nose singled it out from the flurry of other smells; a rabbit, a nearby landfill, a rotting orange far above him. The scent he was tracking was insignificant, almost nonexistent to the average fairy, but to him it was deep and pungent. He was drawing closer to the smell, now going up towards the rapidly approaching surface. He wormed his way through the intertwining roots of a bunch of trees, and surfaced in the bushes that surrounded a picturesque park that seemed out of place in the sea of concrete and glass skyscrapers. He peeked out from between the leathery leaves, shielding his eyes from the glare of the sun. He could already feel it prickling against his sensitive skin despite the countless layers of SPF-75 sunscreen he had applied earlier. Normally he wouldn't even bother going out in this heat, let alone with the stomach cramps he was getting. Doodah Day had to take a sick leave due to getting thrown down fourteen flights of steps during their last mission and seemed quite content lying in a private hospital bed with nurses giving him chocolate truffles and massages whenever he pleased. Mulch wished he could be there too, but he had a mission and wasn't going to turn back now.

A stout, cloaked figure was making its way through the park, not bothering to keep away from prying human eyes. The only thing covering his inhuman face was a hood.

Mulch had to admit, it would look sinister and other-worldly to a passing mud man – what person can walk with a massive hood coving almost it's entire face without bumping into anything along the way? Any human who witnessed what the thing was about to do would spin off stories about a mysterious cloaked midget, providing a perfect cover. It reminded him of one of the mud man legends he had learnt about in school, a 'Grim Reaper', some sort of angel of death. As far as he knew, this guy seemed to be a small version of him. Mulch followed him, keeping to the shadows of the trees right up to the edge of the park. The truth was, Mulch didn't actually _know_ where the Grim Reaper guy was going from there, and all he could hope was that he was going somewhere shady. The sun was already starting to cause a rash.

To his relief – and horror – the thing was making its way towards a large glass building covered in billboards announcing new 'anti-aging' and 'quick and easy' products in bright, bold print. Mulch would only guess what this building was – but one thing was for sure – this mission had just got a whole lot harder.

XUZHOU, CHINA

'Are you _sure_ this is the closest we can get to Shanghai?' Holly asked through her helmet mic.

'Unfortunately, yes. The shuttle port in shanghai got closed down because someone built an airport over it.' Foaly paused before saying, 'you still have exactly 534km to go before you reach the shopping centre'

'Exactly my point', Holly muttered irritably. 'And can these wings go any faster?'

'No need to get annoyed. I can't exactly control where the mud men dump their buildings. And yes, those wings can go faster'

'Well, they aren't,' Holly snapped. 'We'll be lucky to be there by next Christmas at this rate'

Suddenly Foaly voice changed. It became harsher. 'Holly. Slowly lower yourself down to the ground. Do not make any sudden moves.'

'Why?' Holly whispered in response while slowly lowering herself down.

'I gave you the wrong shimmer suit. I gave you the prototype. The solar panels have almost stopped working altogether'

'Are you saying if I make a wrong move the solar panels might stop working altogether?'

'Yes'

'And that I will plummet seven hundred feet with nothing to hold me up'

'Yes'

'And I probably won't make it seeing as I am only going down slowly and only have 5% power left?'

'Yes'

The shimmer suit suddenly winked out, exposing Holly. If anyone were to drive along the road and look up, they would see a small, black – clothed person plummet to the ground. Surely not even a fairy could survive.


	8. Pretzels & Bombs

Thanks to all the patient readers who waited for chapter 7, but now I should write a lot faster, so you shouldn't have to wait as long this time.

'Smile for the camera,' Mulch dodged around a cluster of children having their picture taken in funny Christmas hats. It was hard to keep track of the small, cloaked stranger what with the hordes of characters and children gathering outside the shopping mall. Characters from almost every company were there – a giant burger for McDonalds, Fairies for the party shop, and giant carrot for the vegetable shop. The stranger blended in perfectly, and luckily, so did Mulch. He looked right at home with all of the other crazy characters. He slipped behind a Pretzel stand and kept his eyes fixed on the small black figure. He wasn't entirely sure what the thing was going to do – all he knew was that he had been a notorious criminal in Haven and it was bound to be up to something now.

A lovely, warm, rich smell wafted out of the half–open pretzel cart, distracting him considerably. He could see the man who owned the pretzel cart going over to the soft drink stand, temporarily leaving it unguarded. Mulch couldn't resist and took a handful of pretzels, stuffing them into his mouth. He savoured them before snapping back to the present. Black-caped man had disappeared. Mulch swore under his breath before pushing through the crowd.

_Stupid stomach, _he thought. Then, _Mmm...pretzels._

He wandered round aimlessly for a bit, until he saw what he was looking for. A flash of black material climbing through a window of the shopping complex. This confirmed what he had suspected – this was no elf or pixie – this was a dwarf with years of experience under his belt. How did he know this? The hooded dwarf was climbing through a window four stories up a glass wall. Mulch had prepared for this and had been collecting up a small stash of cam foil pieces from Foaly's workshop, quilting them together to make a cloak just large enough to wrap around his body and protect him from prying mud man eyes. He held his breath and pressed a palm against the smooth glass surface. It stuck fast.

From there it was easy – all he had to do was place a hand or foot on the glass and it would stick. No harnesses or cables necessary. With the cam foil securely on he quickly scaled the wall, out of sight of spectators and more importantly, the cloaked man. He felt slightly dizzy, but put up with it. There was no time for fear of heights now.

Once he had reached the storey just below the open window he stopped, pausing to listen. There was no crashing or screeching, just a muffled _clink, clink, clink. _It was too organised, too systematic. Mulch crept closer to the window.

_Clink, clink, clink_

He peered through the glass to see the floor littered with black, egg-sized stones, each flashing hundreds of different colours. He was confused. They were beautiful and looked precious, making him wonder why he would just leave him there. He could see the cloaked dwarf carefully placing more stones at the other end of the mall.

Mulch positioned himself behind the counter next to the open window and waited, snatching a chocolate bar along the way. _If there's one thing the mud men got right in this world, it's how to make good chocolate, _he thought. He rested on his haunches, waiting for the sound of the cloaked figure approaching the window to escape. He had quite a few questions that needed answering.

Suddenly he found himself with his head pressed up against the floor. His sharp ears had just caught a slight shuffling sound on the other side of the counter when a heavy object slammed into him. He struggled against the dead weight, finally heaving it off him. It was a giant model Chinese temple. The cloaked dwarf stood staunchly across by the door of the shop. Mulch realised he must have thrown the temple all the way from the entranceway to behind the counter where Mulch was crouching. The Temple had to weigh over 30 kilos.

The thing removed his hood to show a middle aged dwarf – enough experience to know all the dwarf tricks, but young and heavy enough to crush Mulch if he wanted to. Mulch quivered slightly.

'How stupid,' the dwarf said. 'How very, very stupid'

'What?' Mulch spat.

'There you are, cowering behind a counter, thinking you are safe when I could clearly see your reflection. This whole building is made of glass.'

Mulch struggled to hide his embarrassment. 'What are you doing anyway? Who _are_ you?' he said, changing the subject.

The dwarf smiled evilly. 'That will spoil the surprise now, won't it? You just need to be patient' Mulch noticed him edging towards the window before making a dash for it. But when Mulch tried to grab him, all he got was a fistful of empty material. He cursed when he found the dwarf had locked the window from the outside, trapping Mulch inside. The rest of the building didn't seem to have any windows that would open – the dwarf must have sneakily glued all of the other windows to their panes, leaving only one left, which he must have sealed when he quickly fled. Suddenly he knew why the dwarf had been so quick to flee. He also knew what all the small, black, rainbow stones were.

Miniature bombs.

A FIELD SOMEWHERE IN CHINA

The first thing Holly Short registered was sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. One minute she was slowly descending, the next she was dropping like a stone down a well. For once she felt absolutely helpless, with no weapon that could protect her and no soft landing. She swallowed and looked down at the rapidly approaching ground. All she could see was grass – no trees, no cars, no people. There was only a narrow road. In the odd way in which some things come, Holly almost felt like laughing – why, she didn't know. Artemis would later explain it as a common reflex within fairies, and the occasional human too.

Foaly was saying something to her, but she turned off her helmet mic. If she was going to die, she would do it at peace with the world, not with an annoying centaur chattering in her ear. She shut her eyes as the ground rushed up to meet her and crossed her arms over her chest.

Her feet never touched the ground. Instead she was yanked up as if a giant geyser of air had just opened up under her. The impact on her legs was exceedingly painful but didn't seem to break any bones. She seemed to bounce and cartwheel in the air as if on an invisible trampoline. Eventually she stopped and the thing keeping her up seemed to disappear, making her land in a tangled heap on the grass. Her bruises were already starting to fade. As soon as she caught her breath she switched on the helmet mic to find Foaly continuing as if he hadn't realised she had ever stopped listening to him at all.

'...so instead of using the primitive devices I attached the alpha mechanism to the –'

'Foaly'

' – which caused a chain reaction in the – '

'Foaly'

' – Which probably caused high amounts of magnetic particles into her system...D'Arvit...'

'Foaly! Shut. Up.'

'Holly! Are you finding any weird mutations on any part of your body?' Foaly sounded stressed.

'No. I'm fine!'

Foaly kept muttering under his breath.

'Foaly...what exactly was that? It felt like I was landing on a safety cushion of some sort'

Holly heard Foaly take a deep, horsy breath. 'Well, I actually adapted the idea from the air pillows they use on film sets when they do scenes where the characters jump off buildings. Then I simply took magnetic particles and fused them with – '

'Foaly. Short. Version '

'- which created a negative magnetic force with the natural metals in the ground, causing you to never be within a metre of it. Anyway, I incorporated it into the suits and even though there wasn't enough power to work the wings, there was just enough power to use the air pillow briefly. I had never tested it before...well...now'

'I guess that explains all the panic about whether it had worked or not afterwards'

'I thought I might have mutated you or something.' He paused before continuing. 'Anyway, you need to get back to the task at hand. The last thing we need is a mad dwarf on the loose at a grand opening ceremony for one of the biggest shopping malls in China.'

'Good point. But how exactly am I supposed to get there?'

'Do you still have those fake round ears Artemis gave you?'

'Yes...wait, how do you know about those?'

'Put them on. You may have to hitchhike.'

Holly slapped her forehead. 'It only gets worse'

'Of course it does. This is the LEP, remember?'

Author's note: PLEASE COMMENT. That's all I ask of you, and most amateur writers would know feedback keeps you motivated and makes you write faster. So the more you comment, the sooner the next chapter will come out.


	9. Spikkle and Specks

Sorry to keep you waiting yet again – This is a super long chapter – I could barely cram everything in here! From here on the boring stuff should be over – it's full on writing from now on. This is one of my favourite chapters so far for some reason; tell me what you think of it. Unfortunately though, I have just read an amazing Artemis Fowl fanfic which got _**42 reviews**_ for one chapter. Can you guys please send in more reviews – I know my writing probably isn't as good as some people's but I enjoy doing it. I would be seriously over the moon if I got 42 reviews. But enough whining on my part - Enjoy!

500 KM OUTSIDE SHANGHAI, CHINA

Holly awkwardly stuck out a hand, waiting impatiently for a car, bus, ANYTHING to come along. At first she had tried running, but it burnt through her magic supplies like fire through hydrogen. So she eventually had to stop and walk, keeping her thumb up in the sign mud men used when hitchhiking. She was in was a fairly unspoiled part of China, but even though she liked the environment being preserved she actually wished there was a house which she could go to. She didn't really care if she had to steal a car – she could always return it later. But there were no houses to go to, no cars to steal. The closest thing to civilisation she'd seen was a cow in a nearby paddock. She knew when there were farm animals there was generally a farm house, but these animals seemed self-sufficient enough not to have to be taken care of every day by a farmer.

Holly shifted uneasily, her hand growing tired from holding it out for so long. To her relief a car appeared on the horizon. She had to almost step out on the road to get it to stop.

The car pulled up on the side of the road and the driver opened the door. Holly was starting to wonder how believable a one metre tall adult was going to be for a person probably just looking for a nice calm ride to the city. He looked doubtfully at her.

'Do you need a ride?' he asked warily in Mandarin. He couldn't stop looking at how her head barely cleared the car door window.

'Yes.' Holly hated using her spare magic to speak tongues but it had to be done. 'I need to go to Shanghai.' She tinted her words with the _Mesmer_ and without waiting for him to reply, jumped into the passenger side of the car.

He looked surprised, but the _Mesmer_ kept him from saying anything. Holly closed the door and the car began to trundle down the road. The man kept glancing her way and opening his mouth as if trying to say something before stopping himself. He finally seemed to pluck up the courage and asked cautiously:

'Wh-why are you so short?'

It was the perfect moment to pull the disability card on him. Holly looked away from him until her eyes were satisfactory watery. She didn't like lying, even to mud men, but did it anyway.

'It's my disability,' she snuffled convincingly. 'I was born with this problem – I will never grow to be full height'

The driver looked shocked. 'I'm so sorry...I did- I didn't realise'

'It's alright,' Holly continued her acting. 'You didn't know. I get asked it all the time.'

'Good thinking,' Foaly murmured through her earpiece. She had hid her helmet and wings under a bush, where it would no doubt self destruct. The only form of communication she had with Foaly now was her Iris-cam and the tiny earpiece. She was lucky it had a small microphone on it – but she didn't dare to talk to him through it in case the mud man heard.

Foaly and Holly had had an elevated discussion earlier about how Holly could blend in with the crowd in a tight-fitting shimmer suit. But the man in the car was so shocked by Holly's 'birth defect' he didn't even look at her; obviously scared he would say something else offensive.

'Can you go faster?' Holly asked sweetly. She decided to milk the 'disability' for all it was worth –even though to her it wasn't a disability at all. She actually thought it was an asset – she could fit into tiny spaces and blend into the shadows. The car thrummed as the driver changed gear and stepped on the accelerator.

For Holly it was an odd sensation to be in such a bumpy, primitive machine. The magnetic cars in Haven skimmed across the road so smoothly it was hard to tell you were even moving. But the Mud man's bulky SUV juddered along the uneven country road, spitting Diesel fumes out its exhaust pipe. She was also surprised to see the car still was a Manual – she thought even humans had stopped using gears by now.

_Some things never change, _she thought.

* * *

They pulled up outside the petrol station just as rain started to patter down on the windscreen. Holly hopped out of the car, embracing the soft wind on her face. The sky had dulled to a blackish-grey and the fields were slowly being replaced by houses and villages as the road wound on. The petrol station stood out in stark contrast to the run-down huts of the village, white and modern with shiny aluminium gas pumps. It looked too new, like it had never really been used. Holly found herself not surprised – It almost looked like some of the village houses had been made with mud instead of concrete, and twigs instead of wood. She couldn't imagine any of them driving a car, let alone owning one.

Her earpiece buzzed to life as Foaly started giving instructions.

'Lose the man who drove you here. You don't need him any more'

'What?'

'Make him skedaddle. Shoo. Go away.' Foaly continued.

'But his car is the only form of transport I've got.' Holly was perplexed. She had gone through the trouble to hitchhike, just to find she had to get abandoned in the middle of nowhere again.

'Not anymore,' Foaly said proudly. 'Do you know I had an apprentice before you became part of Recon?'

'No.' Holly answered. She knew where this was going.

'Well, I decided to take on an apprentice. Someone who could be my...assistant'

'Probably more like slave,' Holly couldn't resist adding.

'Anyway, the person I chose was a young elf called Spikkle Magnus. He was born in one of the gang areas of Haven – I first noticed him when he got arrested for hacking into the city system and changing all the electronic view screens to an animation of a dwarf shaking its bottom.'

'A _kid_ hacked your system? No wonder Opal Koboi doesn't seem to have any problems.' Holly meant it as a joke, but the tone of Foaly's voice when he next spoke made her wonder if she had pushed it a bit too far. What had started out as a slight rivalry between Foaly and Opal seemed to have escalated a fair bit over the years.

'Don't mention that...' Foaly muted the sound on the microphone to cover up his foul language. Holly waited for him to continue. 'I took Spikkle on as an apprentice – I thought it was a good way to prevent him from turning into some neurotic psychopath like Opal. But he grew bored with Haven and moved to the surface.'

Holly had guessed it was coming but still felt shocked. 'He moved to the surface? Can you even _do_ that?'

'He got permission – he has his own workshop behind the gas station. It comes in handy.'

'So should I tell him you sent me?'

'Just say you work for the LEP. And take those fake ears off – they don't look too good'

'Okay, boss,' Holly laughed before heading off towards the driver who had given her the ride.

After thanking the driver and waiting for him to drive away Holly entered the gas station shop, setting the bell above the door jingling. It was just as modern here as it was outside – shiny aluminium shelving and a perfect white cash register. A door opened behind the counter and out stepped an elf dressed in a crisp white shirt and shorts. Holly guessed he had to be about her age – he looked knowledgeable but young. If he were a human he would be in his early twenties. His hair was a dark brown and was paired with the most amazing green eyes that were very rare in fairies. At first it was almost hard to tell he was an elf; the high cheekbones were the only slight indication he wasn't human. He was perfectly tanned from so long on the surface and seemed to be much taller than the average elf. Memory latex surrounded his ears, rounding them realistically – if Holly didn't know better she would swear he was a mud man.

She removed her fake mud man ears, not concerned about a human seeing them – there were no humans around. As far as she could tell the petrol station was purely for travellers on their way to Shanghai by car. Spikkle didn't look too surprised.

Holly struggled to think of a greeting.

'Don't worry; I know why you're here'

'You do?' Foaly and Holly said simultaneously, Foaly talking through Holly's earpiece so only she could hear his surprise. Or so he thought.

'I can hear you too, Foaly,' He gestured to a tiny silver swirl in his ear; something Holly had to assume was an earpiece. Holly noticed he was wearing a pair of boots with massive soles, obviously to make him look the same height as a small human.

'But this is a secure channel,' Holly hear Foaly mutter. 'Only people who understand –'

'–Centaurian, I know,' Spikkle finished for him. 'I taught myself most of it from reading old Centaurian texts and their translations, but you taught me some when I was your apprentice too, Foaly. My systems pick up any LEP signal within 200 miles of here – I don't want any surprise visits. The LEP can sometimes make unjustified decisions about fairies living above ground.'

'I'm guessing you know why I'm here then,' Holly managed to ask, although she knew the answer.

'Yup,' Holly swore Spikkle was the only person who could sound intelligent saying the word 'yup'. 'You need wings because your techie decided to give you the wrong shimmer suit.' He aimed a dazzling smile at Holly's iris cam, obviously intended to mock Foaly. But instead it seemed to do something to Holly. She felt warm and buttery inside. It was highly unsettling.

The truth was; Holly had never really felt attracted to another fairy before – there was never really any place for romantic relationships in the LEP. Sure, she'd had her share of boyfriends in high school, but her adult life had been fairly relationship-free.

She shook herself out of it. 'Yes,' she replied.

'You're in luck. I've just finished the design for a new suit. Military standard. Uses liquid armour technology.'

Holly heard Foaly splutter. 'But that costs a fortune. The substance needed for liquid armour is so rare, you're lucky to even find it!'

'I know. But I develop gear for the Atlantean Military. They will pay anything. My budget is much bigger than yours'

Foaly grumbled something incomprehensible.

Spikkle clapped his hands together. 'Anyway, now that's all sorted out, let's get you suited up.'

'BIG MALL', CENTRAL SHANGHAI, CHINA

Mulch's hands were growing sweaty. He had spent the last ten minutes searching the building for an exit. But he was trapped on the top floor – the only way to get down was by elevator, which had been turned off, no doubt by the strange cloaked dwarf.

He had once tried smashing window with a chair, but it didn't even scratch it. Even his excess of fairy flatulence couldn't knock it down. He even threw one of the little bombs at it, but it didn't even explode. As far as he could tell it could only be set off by a detonator. Even then, he didn't dare moving any more – he wouldn't want one blowing up in his hand.

It was five to three in the afternoon - Mulch had to guess they would be detonated at three o'clock, exactly when the mall was to be opened. The most he could do was try to find a safe place and wait.

After another few minutes of searching he found a spot under a counter in large restaurant and settled down. _The impact of the bombs should be softened by the wood,_ he reasoned. A clock on the wall was slowly ticking around, dragging the moment out over what seemed like ages. He could hear the faint chanting of people outside, counting down. It was as if they were counting down to his fate.

'Five!' They all shouted.

Mulch gulped.

'Four!'

A bead of sweat made its way down from his forehead.

'Three!'

Mulch tightened his fists.

'Two!'

_I'm too young to die! _Mulch felt like screaming.

'One'

Mulch shut his eyes and his whole world exploded.

Author's Note:

Okay, I need you guys to tell me what you think so far, from Holly's 'thing' with Spikkle to what you think will happen to Mulch. Also, pestering me constantly to write the next chapter _does_ work, so feel free to send annoying comments as well. I wanted to also take this opportunity to answer some questions:

Will Opal Koboi be back?

YES. She will be back – and I hear she has one hell of a plan cooked up. Remember there's two of her – this comes after the end of The Time Paradox. That's all I'll give away for now though 

Will Minerva be bitchy in this story?

No. Personally I don't think Eoin intended her to be like that, she just really likes Arty and is a bit jealous of Holly. So no, she won't be mean and scheming like in quite a few other fanfictions.

Is the party on the 25th or the 26th?

It is on the 26th – and both Holly and Minerva are going to it. This confused quite a few people as I changed the date from the 25th, as it seemed a bit better. So yes, Holly and Minerva will both be there.

That's all the questions I have been asked for now – feel free to send in anything you want answering, and keep those reviews coming in!


	10. Don't Play With Fire

SHANGHAI, CHINA, 2:57

Holly let out a little sigh of relief as the grey buildings of Shanghai came into view. The air was polluted, but it gave her some relief that she would have more to look at than cows in paddocks below. Spikkle had fitted her with a state-of-the-art shimmer suit and helmet. There was no doubt his budget was bigger than Foaly's – the wings were so light and fast she actually had to slow down, and the shimmer suit material was made of cam foil so refined it blended into the most complex of patterns.

She brought up the GPS system on her new helmet visor and scanned the buildings below. A dot appeared on one of the buildings – a glass affair with a large gathering of people outside. She made sure the cam foil was working before swooping down in a wide arc. Spotting a good place to land behind a neglected burger bar, she lowered herself towards the ground and let her feet settle soundlessly on the ground.

She clicked her neck to check her magic supplies before fading out of sight. Her magic supplies were draining, but she couldn't allow herself to be seen. She had been lucky when hitchhiking – the man had believed her disability tale.

_Next time I might not be so lucky, _she thought as she buzzed up into the air. The air was beginning to cool as evening crept closer – she could feel it buffeting against her as she zoomed up and landed on the roof next to the shopping mall. Any ditziness had been left behind her, now she only had one target – get Mulch out, and fast. She had a feeling in the pit of her stomach that something bad was going to happen, and Recon had taught her to trust her instincts. Holly still wasn't sure exactly what Mulch was up to – all Foaly had told her that it looked like he was following another dwarf, most likely trying to arrest him. Luckily though, he didn't end up digging into the shopping mall, but a local park instead.

'Foaly,' Holly said briskly. 'Relay the description of the dwarf Mulch was following.'

'I've put the DNA through the LEP mainframe, using my own patented technology of course,' he couldn't resist adding. 'And it seems we have a criminal.'

'Well?' Holly pressed, some part of her brain telling her she had to hurry.

'The name is Muldoon. More commonly known as 'The Pilferer'. Not a dazzling name by gang standards, but he's built up quite a reputation. Highly skilled – has escaped the LEP numerous times Seems he isn't loyal to any gang, making him quite hard to track down'

'So does he just do solo jobs then?'

'It doesn't look like it,' Foaly observed. 'He works by himself, but does all his jobs for other people.'

Holly knew what he meant. 'Are you saying he is employed by other people to do jobs for them?'

'As far as we know, yes,' Foaly paused. Holly could imagine him looking at his notes. 'Basically, people pay him money, he gets the job done. And I can't see him going to the surface for a stroll.'

'You're right,' Holly clenched her fist in anticipation. 'He's up to something, I can feel it'

She perched herself on the edge of an office block building, scanning the ground for any sight of the shady dwarf, but keeping the shopping mall in her sight at all times. She zoomed in with her helmet cam, but the throngs of people down below made her give up any hope of finding him in a hurry. Instead she switched to heat sensor and scanned the shopping mall for any signs of life within the cold glass exterior. A small blob of orangish-red showed crouched in one of the rooms. 'Is that Mulch?' she asked Foaly.

'It looks like it,' Foaly said then abruptly stopped. 'Uh – oh'

'What?' Holly asked, but she could already see what was happening. At first her mind couldn't comprehend it; it wasn't something she expected to ever see. Through the infrared thermal filter on her helmet visor, Holly saw tiny orange dots appear throughout the building, seemingly from nowhere. Every red dot blossomed, a bit like a flower growing at many times the speed.

Holly's reflexes kicked in a split second before the impact hit her, her suit going into armoured mode, toughening as the consistency of the material changed to that of metal. Like Foaly's newest design of shimmer suit, it hardened in such a way the impact could be deflected, but the person could still move reasonably well. But Spikkle's large budget had allowed him to add something Foaly had designed but couldn't actually afford – liquid armour. While the metal-like material of the shimmer suits deflected most of the impact, the liquid armour absorbed it. It was a thin layer between the outer and inner layers of the skin-tight suit, consisting of a substance neither solid nor liquid. It simply absorbed any impact that couldn't be deflected, leaving Holly feeling like she had been hit by a pillowcase, not a massive explosion.

Her helmet visor darkened, shielding her eyes from the blinding light.

The whole building had exploded.

FOWL MANOR, IRELAND

Artemis ran his finger down the piece of paper, mentally ticking things off the list. The party preparations had almost finished – all they needed now were the caterers, who were starting to arrive through the main gates. Everything was running swimmingly, with Beckett and Myles already dressed in little tuxedos and the fireworks already set up in neatly choreographed bunches.

The neatly mown grass rustled softly as Artemis made his way across the lawn towards the manor. The party had given him an unusual energy – he felt a bit like an excited little kid again. He had only one worry – Holly hadn't replied to the party invitation yet. He could only hope she would still turn up.

He pushed open the heavy front door to a rush of caterers carrying hundreds of elaborate party dishes from roast turkeys to sticky date puddings. All were cooked by world renown chefs, all organised by Artemis himself. Of all his achievements, Artemis almost had to say this was the best. It wasn't like everything else he had ever done – this wasn't for his own personal gain. It gave him a warm, fuzzy feeling to know in a few hours people would be filling the foyer, enjoying the party.

He watched happily as Angeline and Artemis Sr. walked down the staircase, both in their formal clothes. Angeline was in a sweeping pale pink dress, and Artemis Sr. had traded his suit for a tuxedo and pink bow tie.

Artemis smiled at them before trotting up the stairs to his room. Another perfectly pressed tuxedo hung from his wardrobe door, paired with shiny black shoes and a deep red bowtie. A crimson rose sat in a cup of water for him to slip in the pocket.

He put the ensemble on with great care – just because he planned to 'lighten up' didn't mean he should start getting sloppy – then walked back out into the second floor hallway. Juliet and Butler both stood there talking, also in their formal attire. Even Butler was donning a pink bowtie.

'Master Artemis,' Butler said in greeting. 'How are the party preparations coming?'

'Excellently. Although Juliet did most of the work – I am not too good with the whole love-heart thing'

'As we've discovered,' giggled Juliet.

Butler smiled down at his younger sister. 'And we all know Juliet's a girly-girl at heart'.

Juliet had really made herself up for the occasion – wearing a pinkie-purple dress and chandelier earrings she almost looked like one of the mistresses of the house, not a bodyguard trained in several martial arts and firearms.

Butler whistled as he looked at the mass of caterers bustling about below the main stairway. 'Quite a team you have here,' he commented.

'I know. But we have quite a few guests,' he handed Butler the guest list. 'I want you to keep an eye on the ones underlined in red – I don't want them trying anything'

Butler sighed and shook his head. 'I thought this was going to be a relatively criminal-free party?'

Artemis shuffled his feet uncomfortably. 'Well, Mother and Father had a few friends they insisted I invite...it wasn't like I could say no.' Butler still looked dubious, so Artemis added; 'you don't want to get on the wrong side of criminals'

'You generally don't get on the wrong side of criminals by not inviting them to Christmas parties,' Butler reasoned.

'Criminals are a touchy bunch,' Juliet glanced at Artemis teasingly. Artemis shot her a filthy look. 'Think of Artemis after his plans have been foiled. Perfect example.'

'I have to agree,' Butler laughed despite Artemis's glare.

'I have to check the cake is here,' Artemis said sulkily, storming off down the stairs and leaving Juliet and Butler in peals of laughter. It seemed no matter how hard he tried to change things he still ended up being called a criminal.

_Maybe I will always be a criminal, _he thought sadly. _Sometimes there are things you just can't change._

SHANGHAI, CHINA 3:00

Captain Holly Short got up stiffly, her limbs burning despite the high tech armour. Bright orange flames were beginning to lick at the shopping mall, blackening wooden counters and shelves. Items for sale were indistinguishable – most had been reduced to blackened carcasses of soft toys and electronic devices. She ran right to the edge of the building, thankful she still had enough magic to keep her from prying human eyes. Her shimmer suit's thermal filters cooled to protect her from the heat, but she could still faintly feel the intense waves radiating from the building.

_Mulch is in there, _she thought in dismay. _I can't leave him. _But her pessimistic side was starting to show through – she didn't know how anything could survive in such heat. She quickly switched on her wings, which had thankfully survived, and zoomed over to the window which she assumed was nearest Mulch, pulling a gun from its holster. It wasn't her faithful neutrino, but she was still thankful to have a gun at all. Aiming at point-blank range, she flicked the setting up to full and shot the window.

The whole pane of glass exploded, sending shards bouncing off Holly's shimmer suit and falling into the void below. She was lucky enough that all the spectators had fled screaming to the safety of the nearby park.

She sped through the window, ignoring little pricks of pain at some pieces of glass that had found their way through the armour of her suit.

'Mulch?' She called, even though she didn't expect an answer. Smoke had made the details of the room fuzzy and indistinct, and thermal imaging proved impossible, but Holly still managed to spot the unmoving Mulch lying under a broken fish tank. She ran over to him, tears threatening to dribble down her cheeks. The kleptomaniac dwarf was her friend, and the last thing she wanted was to find him gone forever. _Please don't go, please don't be dead..._

Holly checked his pulse before putting her hand on his chest, focusing all her magic on his dwindling heartbeat. He spluttered amidst the smoke and Holly let out a sigh of relief. Carefully she picked him up, adrenaline somehow giving her the strength to fly him onto the roof next door.

'I've sent some fairies over to pick Mulch up,' Foaly said. 'He will need a bit of time to recover and get the smoke out of his lungs, but he should survive.'

Holly's head was still reeling from the shock. 'How did he survive? You saw what it was like in there.'

'Pure luck. One of the explosions must have hurled him into that giant fish tank, covering him with water. It helped him keep cool temporarily. But he has some severe burns.'

'I'm just glad he's alive.' Holly moved Mulch beneath an overhang of concrete so he couldn't be seen by roaming mud man helicopters. 'But the job isn't done yet. I still need to find that dwarf who planted the bombs in the first place.'

'You can't,' Foaly said sadly. 'He's long gone. But do a scan of the ground anyway'

Holly vibrated out of sight and launched herself into the air. Mulch's near-death had made her realise you can never take friends for granted. She opened up her Mail inbox and sent a message to Artemis. It was only two words long, but she was sure he'd understand.

She halted mid-air and the post-mission happiness stopped cold.

Painted on a football field in black were three letters.

_OPAL KOBOI RETURNS_

UNKNOWN LOCATION

Opal Koboi drummed her red painted fingernails on the side of her Magnachair™, scratching the paint on the armrest. She took great pleasure of feeling her nails gouging into one of Foaly's beloved creations – it was the fifth chair she had got through that month. But it didn't matter – she could afford as many as she wanted. Seeing as she had bought them all off the black market, none of her money went to Foaly anyway.

'Archie!' She screeched impatiently. 'Come here _now_'

A flustered pixie skidded on the polished floor as he stopped in front of the doorway. His forehead was covered in a thin layer of sweat and he was panting heavily.

'The water in my foot spa is _tepid. _Replace it now.'

'Y-Yes Miss Koboi. Right away,' Archie flustered. He scurried off hastily.

'Grab me a Martini while you're at it.' Opal wasn't enjoying the relaxation as much as she'd hoped. She couldn't help imagining those pesky LEP officers prancing about in their hideous jumpsuits. _When I come to rule Haven,_ she thought. _The first thing I'll do is change the uniform. Then I can eradicate that annoying mud boy. _

Archie hurried back into the room, carrying a tray with a martini glass balanced precariously on it, and a jug of steaming water clutched in one hand. He placed the martini on a hovering table next to her, then started the difficult process of trying to replace the foot spa water without moving Opal's feet.

Opal picked up the cocktail, sniffed it, then slammed it back down on the hovertable, making a few drops spill over the edge.

'Why has this got _lemon_ in it?' she sent Archie an icy glare. '_..lemon'_

'S-sorry Miss Koboi'

'So you should be,' she flicked her hand at the martini. 'Get it out of my sight'

'Of course, Miss Koboi'

'And your face is giving me a headache. Go do something useful.' She spun around her chair so he back was to him, flicking tiny droplets of water off her feet, which barely touched the ground. She shooed him away with a flick of her fingers then turned on the flatwall™ TV screen in front of her.

'Get me a secure connection to 109' she ordered the computer. The screen flicked on to a shadowed face.

'What is it?' The face grumbled. 'This better be important'

'I can talk to you whenever I like' Opal said stubbornly, crossing her arms. 'Don't forget, I'm the one funding your precious company.'

'Both you and I know you are not giving money as charity,' the shady figure reasoned.

'If my plan works, you will be a very rich elf. I trust the supashakes are going well?'

'Oh yes, no one suspects a thing' he let out a laugh. 'I bet even the LEP will be drinking them soon. Pip n' co are on their way up'

'Yes,' Opal Koboi agreed. 'They certainly are.'

Archie shivered as evil laughter filled the room.

* * *

Author's note:

The introduction of Spikkle to the storyline has caused quite a few reviews, not all good, but you must understand he is not a main character as such. Please put up with him for now :) . Now, though, it's time for a few questions to be answered.

Isn't Foaly a genius?

Yes, Foaly is a Genius, but there are still smart fairies out there. Spikkle just chose to work for the Atlanteans instead, not travel an evil path like Opal Koboi. Foaly is still just as smart, but Spikkle has a bigger budget and can afford better materials. Yes, Foaly is a Genius, but there are still smart fairies out there. Spikkle just chose to work for the Atlanteans instead of the LEP, and not travel an evil path like Opal Koboi. Foaly is probably smarter, but Spikkle has a bigger budget and can afford better materials.

Why isn't Arty in the story more?

Artemis will be in the story a lot more around the party and the shock that comes after it (I'm not giving away any more, sorry). Artemis is already cemented into Chapter 10, which should be released within the next couple of days.

Is this an H/OC story?

Not really, no. It's mainly Artemis and Holly, with a few hiccups along the way, mainly due to Artemis's social awkwardness and social insecurity. (I _hate_ it when all of a sudden Arty is confident socially – that doesn't match Eoin's Artemis at all! We have to face it, Artemis still has a lot to learn.)


	11. Can I Have This Dance?

THE LOWER ELEMENTS POLICE, HAVEN

Holly took off her helmet, letting her auburn hair fall around her shoulders. It had grown considerably; probably due to the fact she never had time for a haircut. She pushed open the door to her office, imagining the frighteningly tall amount of paperwork she had 'forgotten' to do over the months.

Instead she found herself being roughly shoved to the side by some flying force, landing with a loud '_ufff!' _on the ground. She tried to struggle but her tired muscles hadn't healed yet, leaving her almost helpless. As soon as the weight receded she flipped onto her back and glared at her attacker.

'What in Frond's name-'. She was surprised to find herself staring at the heavily mascaraed eyes of Lili Frond. 'What are _you_ doing here?'

Lili stood up and dusted herself off as Holly scrambled to her feet. 'To help you get ready for the party,' she said simply.

'Is there anyone in Haven who _doesn't _know about the party?' Holly asked angrily.

Lili blinked at her innocently.

'Get out. Now.' Holly added. She knew Lili was stupid, but not _that _stupid. Anyone with half a brain would just leave Holly in peace. But she still didn't move. Holly just glared at her, too tired to do anything.

'Holly,' Lili said gently. 'What do you plan to do? You can't go to a 'Christmastime love' themed party in a recon jumpsuit _,_'

Holly could see her point, but jutted out her lower lip stubbornly. There was no way she was taking orders from someone who lived her whole life in makeup and six-inch heels. 'Make me.'

Lili sighed. 'Look, I know I'm not your favourite person in the world, but Foaly wanted to make it up for the whole hologram incident –'

Holly interrupted. 'He showed you the hologram thing? I will kill that centaur'

'A group of us were watching as part of our end-of-year training'

Holly clenched her fists angrily, but let Lili continue.

'So anyway, Foaly got us to organise a makeover session'

Holly finally took the time to look around her. The whole room had been redecorated – her desk had been covered in pots and tubes of makeup and a bunch of Lili Frond's giggling friends gathered round in clumps. A large mirror had been propped up against a wall and a clotheshorse full of dresses sat demurely in a corner. Holly grimaced. Most of the dresses were pink.

_Maybe, _she thought_, it would be easier to just let Lili help. After all, she probably does this all the time. _ She sighed and shook her head to clear her mind, which was cloudy with exhaustion.

'Okay,' Holly sighed. Any anger for the ditzy elf had disintegrated and she was too tired to put up a fight. If this was what Foaly wanted, he could have it. She could make him eat his hooves later.

Lili's face brightened.

'But I'm not wearing pink. If you make me I swear I'll rip your ears off,' added Holly firmly. 'I can put up with makeup, and if you want to do my hair that's fine with me, but absolutely _no pink_'

Lili looked slightly disappointed, but soon recovered and ushered in a bunch of giggling Lili look-alikes. Holly gaped.

'_Why_ exactly do we need all these people?'

'Three reasons,' Lili didn't seem to realise it was a rhetorical question. She ticked the answers off on her fingers. 'a) We have exactly three hours now to get you ready for the party , b) We still have to get you up to the surface on time, and c) we will all be working on separate things.'

'Okay, okay, I get it' Holly replied warily. 'Now what do you need to do?'

'You don't have to worry about a thing,' said Lili, sounding fiendishly delighted for someone who had put fluoro pink hearts on her LEP uniform. 'Just sit down and we'll do the rest'

Holly shivered.

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND

Artemis watched as a pair of headlights made their way up the driveway, cutting through the darkness like sharp blades. From the second-story window he see the everything, from the giant statue centrepiece to the driveway, which was illuminated by delicate fairy lights. Even the trees had thin strings of fairy lights surrounding them, making it appear they were bearing diamonds instead of fruit.

He got up from his position by the window and made his way down the stairs, surprised at how desolate it looked without all the party organisers and caterers filling the main entranceway. Butler, ever dutiful, stood by the doorway – but he looked more relaxed, like a host rather than a bodyguard.

'Butler, do you mind if I greet our first guests?' he asked cheerfully. 'I think you may have to check the ballroom for Beckett and Myles – they were sliding on the floor in their socks earlier.'

'Of course, Master Artemis,' replied Butler, taking a hint. 'I might just go and check on them now.' Artemis blinked gratefully up at him before walking up to the limo that had just pulled up. A French flag waved in the evening breeze. He graciously opened the door.

Minerva Paradizo stepped out, her silver dress glowing in the gentle moonlight. Her corkscrew curls were perfectly arranged, pinned away from her face by heart-shaped diamante hair slides. She had grown since Artemis had last seen her – physically, Artemis and Minerva were the same age, even if legally Artemis was three years older. She was only slightly shorter than him, and had lost any childishness she had when Artemis had last seen her.

Once again it struck him how pretty she was, but he didn't feel anything more than friendship between them. To him Minerva was no more than a friend, and never would be. But Holly was different. It was as if he had been through so much with Holly it was almost right for them to be together. All he needed to know was whether or not she liked him back.

He smiled at her, not entirely sure what to do – should he shake her hand or try to strike up a conversation? He was caught somewhere between them when Minerva leaned forward and kissed just past both his cheeks in greeting. Artemis felt incredibly stupid – he should have remembered the French custom instantly. His normally razor-sharp brain seemed to turn a bit jelly-like around girls, namely Holly and Minerva. Minerva didn't seem to share his discomfort.

'I haven't seen you in ages! How's the family?'

'Good,' Artemis replied, relieved she didn't seem awkward. 'The twins are as playful as ever – Myles is turning into quite the scientist'

Minerva laughed. 'It looks like there might be an Artemis Jr. in the making'

'No,' Artemis corrected good-naturedly. 'I'm Artemis Jr.'

'Okay then,' continued Minerva, unperturbed. 'Artemis Junior Jr. then'

They both laughed together, and Artemis felt happy to have someone his own age to talk to. He already felt a friendship developing between them now they were away from the stress of Taipei 101. He shivered as a gust of cold wind buffeted around them.

'Do you want to go inside?' Artemis offered. 'You have to fill me in on what happened since I last saw you'

Minerva's eyes brightened. 'Of course! You wouldn't believe what happened last summer...' she started. And with that they both went inside, Butler smirking as their chatter faded into the distance and all was silent again.

* * *

At six thirty the party was in full swing, the main ballroom at the back of the manor filled with people dancing along to jazzy Christmas music. Artemis and Minerva sat on a couple of chairs off to the side, watching couples sweep across the dance floor. The awkwardness had slowly returned – they had run out of things to say and Artemis didn't know what to do next. He couldn't help feeling Minerva was waiting for him to ask her something. He shuffled his feet.

Finally Minerva stood up, obviously tired of waiting, 'Are you going to ask me to dance or what?'

Artemis turned beetroot red, his pale features flooding with colour. He cursed himself for not asking her to dance- after all, they were friends, weren't they?

Artemis got to his feet and held out a hand, trying to hide his embarrassment. 'Do you wish to dance?' He asked politely.

'Of course,' replied Minerva, obviously happy he hadn't turned her down. She took his hand and they stepped out onto the dance floor. Artemis was relieved to have all his dance lessons come flooding back to him – he had hired a personal dance tutor before the party so he could at least do the simple dances without tripping up over his own feet.

He couldn't help wondering where Holly was – he knew she was coming by the short message he had received. It only had two words on it, but it was all Artemis needed. He couldn't understand why Holly was so late – he doubted there would be any hidden meaning behind the message – all it had said was 'I'll come'. He pushed it to the back of his mind – she would probably just be caught up at work.

'It looks like you've done this before,' he commented, noticing the way Minerva glided across the ballroom, her feet barely touching the ground. She made him feel big and uncoordinated.

'I've been dancing since I was seven,' she replied, then frowned. 'Mère insisted I take lessons'

Artemis immediately felt sorry for her – her mother had run off with a gardener about a year before he first met her. They danced on in silence.

'Arty!' Artemis heard his name being called through the crowd. He stopped abruptly, almost knocking Minerva over in the process. His mother walked towards him, holding Father's hand. She looked impossibly happy, her cheeks flushed. 'Someone's come to meet you'

He left Minerva to go off and find Butler before following his mother. They weaved around people talking and dancing towards the end of the ballroom.

'You'll see them soon,' Angeline murmured, before walking back into the crowd. Artemis was left standing alone, puzzled.

A girl stood in the doorway connecting the ballroom to the main foyer, somehow looking calm and uneasy at the same time. She wore a beautiful red strapless dress that sparkled in the light and her auburn hair was twisted back – it almost looked like she was dressed for the Oscars. It took Artemis a full minute to realise who she was.

It was Holly.

* * *

Holly stared at Artemis, feeling strangely self conscious out of her Recon uniform. She couldn't deny that Lili had done a good job – somehow Holly had been dressed for the occasion without so much as a single scrap of pink.

Her heart leaped when she saw Artemis, but she kept her face carefully neutral. Until she knew exactly what she thought about him, she wasn't going to give anything away.

The last few hours had been a blur – all she could remember was being handed a dress to try on and falling asleep in a chair. Lili and her followers had twisted her hair back, letting small wisps down to frame her face. Holly's makeup had been done as well – she was wearing subtle eyeliner and red lipstick.

'We want that red carpet look,' Frond had babbled, showing her pictures of humans at some film awards ceremony. Holly had gotten the feeling Lili was enjoying the makeover session a bit _too_ much. Holly was surprised to find herself enjoying it a little too.

She stood by the entrance to the ballroom, expecting to see Artemis return her gaze with a friendly wave, or at least some acknowledgement. But instead he just stood there his mouth hanging open idiotically. There was no recognition in his eyes, only wonder.

Suddenly he seemed to snap out of his trance-like state, swapping his vacant look for one of surprise.

'H-Holly? Is that you?' he stammered. 'You...you look...' he couldn't seem to finish his sentence.

'Awful?' Holly finished laughingly. Artemis's face still held a twisted look of surprise.

'No...never awful. You look – beautiful'

'Well...um, thanks,' Holly replied, a little surprised herself at his response. She had expected maybe a _good _or _pretty_, but not _beautiful._

Artemis still remained standing awkwardly, looking a bit like a confused five-year old.

'You look like a confused five-year-old,' Holly pointed out. Artemis shook his head and laughed.

'I guess I do,' he replied, looking relieved the awkward moment had passed. 'I feel a bit like one too. To tell the truth, I'm amazed. I never thought I would see Captain Holly Short wearing a dress and makeup.'

Holly laughed 'I don't know how Foaly managed to get me up to the surface without half the LEP knowing.'

'He's Foaly,' Artemis reasoned. 'He could probably smuggle a couple of elephants into the LEP and no one would ever know'

'I can barely remember how he got me to the surface. I was half asleep.'

'You don't look very tired now,' Artemis commented.

'I stopped off at Tara along the way,' Holly explained. She let a small flicker of what looked like blue electricity form around her fingertips. 'Magic seems to wake me up'

'Just as well. We can't have you falling asleep at the party,' Artemis said. Holly noticed him looking at her with his head tilted to one side.

'What?' Holly asked.

'Seeing as you seem to have grown by 25cm, I am guessing Foaly fitted you out with some new footwear. And looking at your posture, they must be of the hovering kind.' Holly rolled her eyes. Foaly _had _given her some special shoes – but even though they hovered over the ground, walking still felt the same. Only Artemis could have noticed any difference.

'Although,' he continued. 'That may also be because one of Foaly's new mini Neutrinos tied to your ankle.' Holly looked down at her dress, which was so long it touched the floor, hiding both her hovering shoes and mini Neutrino.

'Spill, mud boy. How did you know that?' Artemis tapped the side of his nose and smiled mysteriously.

'A true magician never reveals his secrets' Artemis quoted, grinning.

'More like a true annoying mud boy never stops acting smart,' Holly shot back good-naturedly.

'Anyway, enough of the talking,' Artemis said. 'More dancing. This is a party, you know'

'Obviously'

'So, Captain Short, would you do me the honour of sharing this dance?' He held out a hand. Holly snorted.

'Please, spare me the theatrics'

Artemis sighed, but kept his hand outstretched. Holly laughed.

'Of course, Arty. Would I ever say no?'

And with that they walked out onto the floor, hand in hand, just as the lights dimmed and the starting chords of the next song began to play.

(Another annoying) Authors note:

Awww...so romantic *sighs*. Finally the drama of the party is upon us, so _please_ don't stop reading. I will keep writing – this is one of my favourite parts of the storyline. Please keep coming with the reviews – one of the reasons this chapter took so long to write was because I (sadly) had very few reviews for Chapter 10. So if you want to find out what happens at the party for heaven's sake _REVIEW!_


	12. Roses

Anyone who has had writers block will know what it's been like for me this week – not only have I basically been buried in homework, but I have spent hours staring at a blank word document trying to write this chapter. So please bear with me for the shortness of it – I didn't want to keep you waiting too long. So if this chapter isn't too good, blame my writers block :)

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND

Artemis felt nervous as he led Holly out onto the floor. There were far fewer couples dancing - most people were standing around in groups, holding champagne flutes and talking. When he realized why his heart sank.

The lights had been dimmed to a romantic glow and the jazzy Christmas music gave way to slower songs. If Holly wanted to pull away, the time was now.

It was at that moment he felt more scared than he ever had in his life – more than when he was struggling to escape from the trolls at the Eleven Wonders of the Human World theme park, more than when his mother was dying, more than when he was on the brink of death. Holly could easily reject him – the music was a slow and romantic tune, not like all the previous songs.

But instead she pulled him out right into the centre of the floor, and they began to dance.

Perhaps now is a good time to describe what exactly was happening at the time. The Fowl Manor ballroom was a large and high-ceilinged affair, so big it would probably take up a whole two stories of an average house. Its walls were a combination of polished wooden panelling and tall, narrow windows. Large crystal chandeliers dangled from the ceiling, but Artemis had also added theatre quality lighting around the edges of the room, all cunningly concealed above a ridge at the top of the wooden panelling. These lights in themselves could be dimmed, change colour, or become spotlights, all controlled by one person sitting in a small cupboard just off the main foyer. Artemis had actually employed someone purely to manage the lighting.

He had also arranged chairs around the edge of the dance floor, intending them to be for the guests, but remaining empty. This was partly because Beckett and Myles were racing around the room and jumping on the chairs with some of their friends, but also because most people had stood up to watch the remaining couples dance.

Artemis was in a state of pure bliss – the party was a success, Minerva didn't seem to want to be anything more than friends, and he was dancing with the person who he loved. It couldn't be more perfect.

Artemis and Holly didn't notice as the remaining couples quietly finished dancing and gathered around them to watch as both human and fairy swept across the floor.

Even if they had, they wouldn't have cared.

UNKNOWN LOCATION, HAVEN

Opal flicked the test tube with her finger, watching as the clear liquid bounced against the sides. The tiny volume of solution was her brainchild, the one thing which would grant her world fame, whether anyone wanted it or not.

A sullen-looking sprite stood in front of her, his head bowed respectfully. He was holding a tray of what appeared to be beverages, each in a brightly coloured recyclable bottle. Opal took one and examined it.

'Does it work?' she asked, not looking at him as if he carried some unsightly disease. He shuffled his feet, wings twitching.

'Well, about that...' he started, but faded off mid sentence.

'Please tell me you tested it before sending it out onto the shelves.'

'Well...'

'You didn't, did you?' she screeched, hurling the bottle at him. He struggled to catch it before it hit the ground. 'Typical sprite. You need to learn_ I_ am the great one here. Without my money Pip n' co would have disintegrated months ago. '

'B-but Miss Koboi, I am not in charge of the company- '

'Don't answer me back!' she snapped. 'You are head of production, and should have tested it first. The Pip n' co Supashakes™ have been on the shelves for months now.'

The sprite struggled to find a good excuse, but he knew arguing wasn't going to work. Once Opal Koboi had her mind set, there wasn't much you could do to change it. 'I'm sorry, Miss Koboi,' he resorted to saying. 'Would you like me to find you a test subject?'

Opal tossed the sealed test tube to Archie, who was standing dutifully in a corner, before lazing back on a brand new hover-lounger, her feet propped up on a floating pouffe. She seemed to consider his offer, before looking at him straight in the eye, making him feel the way a mouse does when he finds himself face-to-face with a snake. She smiled sweetly.

'I was debating whether to test it on you, but I have a much better idea. Still, enough on that –we have more important issues to face. Archie, come here'

'Y-yes Miss Koboi?'

'Arrange an underwater shuttle to depart immediately. We are breaking myself out of prison'

The sprite gawped at Opal. 'You're breaking _yourself _out of an _Atlantean prison?' _He asked incredulously. Opal gave another smile, showing her tiny teeth.

'Of course, my dear little subject. And you're the decoy'

The sprite immediately wished he hadn't opened his mouth. The Atlanteans were renound for their prisons – not only were they underwater, but they were surrounded by only the best security guards and policemen. If you broke out of an Atlantean prison, you were legend.

'Is there anyone else going with us?' Archie asked, sounding hopeful.

'No,' Opal replied, 'the only person who can pull this off is me.'

FOWL MANOR, IRELAND

'Do you want to go outside?' Artemis whispered in Holly's ear. They had been dancing for half an hour and Artemis's feet were beginning to hurt despite his specially-designed shiny leather dance shoes he had purchased for the occasion. Holly nodded at him and they began to make their way to the back door.

Everyone had gone back to dancing shortly after they had seen Holly and Artemis together, and now the hall was filled with couples slow dancing and waltzing along to the carefully selected music chosen by Artemis himself. He had even composed a few of the piano pieces himself under the name J Z Staccato.

The cool night air breezed around their ankles as they walked out into the faintly-lit grounds surrounding Fowl Manor. The grass held a slightly silver glow from the perfectly circular moon, which was only just poking out from behind the clouds. They sat down on the top of the grassy slope.

'Wow,' Holly breathed, looking at the landscape from where the Fowl Manor land sloped downwards. Any nearby houses were hidden by trees. 'It's perfect'

Artemis slipped his hand around hers in which he hoped was a subtle way. Holly either didn't notice or didn't care.

'I used to come here when I was younger,' he said hesitantly. 'Back in the criminal days. It helped me think. I never really appreciated the scenery though'

Holly grinned. 'Too busy plotting how to kidnap fairies in the dead of night'

'To think I lived the first twelve years of my life hurting others.' Artemis sighed sadly. 'Committing crimes, ignoring some of the most important people in my life...then I made it even worse by kidnapping you. All for gold,' he almost spat the last part. He had been disgusted when he had travelled back in time and met his past self – five years ago it was clear to see he had been obnoxious, cruel and heartless. But he had changed. Seeing his sad expression, Holly put her arm round his shoulders.

'I'm glad you kidnapped me. Imagine what would have happened if you hadn't gotten mixed up with us fairies – you would probably be trying to rule the world by now. And...' She stopped herself abruptly. Artemis looked at her curiously, but she stayed silent. 'Never mind'

'It's okay,' Artemis replied, despite the fact he knew she must be hiding something. Holly smiled at him gratefully. He knew she wasn't comfortable telling him, and he wasn't going to pressure him into something.

Artemis stood up. 'Come on, I want to show you something.'

He led her down the hill to a clump of trees which were growing at the edge of the Fowl land. Holly was surprised to see a wooden, almost Japanese style fence hidden in the thick bush. But it didn't look old and abandoned – it looked new.

'I made this for you,' he said simply, before opening the gate. Holly couldn't help gasping.

Light danced and reflected off a small stream trickling beneath an ornate bridge, making patterns on the surface of the water. Candle-like lighting was hung from the fence, illuminating the grass in a subtle glow. Holly didn't know what to say.

'Arty, its...perfect'

Artemis unpinned the rose from his jacket and gently tucked it behind Holly's ear.

'No,' he said softly. 'You're perfect'

He leant forward and kissed her, and this time Holly found herself kissing him back.

Authors note:

*Sob* Holly and Artemis are meant for each other...Ok, enough of that. Remember to review, review, review! I got a stunning 30 reviews last chapter, which helped me get over my writer's block, and I can almost guarantee you that the next chapter will come a lot sooner than this one did. If I get more reviews.

Another point to be sorted out: This is not an Artemis/Minerva fanfic. She may stir up some trouble, but Holly and Artemis are meant for each other!


	13. Crystalline Tears

Sorry about the time it took for me to publish this chapter!

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND

The sparks faded as Holly and Artemis's lips finally broke contact. Holly felt so calm in Artemis's arms, and for once she didn't mind not being in control. She had spent so much time being the adult it felt good to let someone else look after her for a change. Ever since her parents had died she had tried to hide any emotions beneath her tough exterior, but now she could be herself. She didn't have to hide anything now.

Holly rested her head on his shoulder, liking the way the material of his jacket felt against her cheek. They both stared out into the garden, which was so tranquil, with a tiny waterfall trickling in a corner and a wooden Japanese-style seat sitting in the lightest part of the garden. Artemis took her hand and led her over to it. They sat down.

'Did you make this?' she asked quietly.

'Not quite,' he admitted. 'It was actually already half done - Angeline had it made years ago. But I cleared it out and added the bridge and lighting'

'It's fairy-sized,' Holly laughed. She turned off the hover on her shoes and walked onto the bridge, running her fingers across the intricately carved handrail. 'Did you do the carving on this too?'

'Yes,' he said, pulling his hand out of his pocket and holding it up. A band-aid stretched across his palm. 'Another thing I learned is that you have to keep the chisel _away _from your hand'

Holly laughed then gazed at Artemis, her eyes shining in the flickering candlelight. He looked so different to her now – less like an annoying mud boy and more of an adult. His eyes now held a certain softness instead of the cold harshness that used to reside there. After a short moment Artemis broke the silence.

'We have to go inside soon,' he said apologetically. 'But just before we go I wanted to give you something.' He reached behind a bush and picked up a small box and walked over to her.

'Merry Christmas,' he smiled, handing her the box. She took it but didn't open it.

'Do you mind if I open it later?' she asked. He shook his head.

'You can open it whenever you like' he replied, frowning as a shocked expression crossed Holly's face. 'What's wrong?'

'I thought I had forgotten something! I never got you a Christmas present!'

Artemis walked up to her and put his hand round her shoulders. 'You kissed me, and that is the best present I could ever receive'

* * *

Minerva Paradizo glanced casually from the doorway for any sign of Artemis, trying not to show any worry on her face. She liked the Irish boy, and his disappearance puzzled her. She found herself being jostled by a pot bellied man as she walked back into the ballroom.

'Did you see that?' The man slurred, obviously already drunk. She was surprised to see tears in his eyes.

'What happened?' she asked cautiously, deducting it was best to not irritate the man.

'It was beautiful,' he said, swaying slightly. 'Fowl boy. Fire girl. Dancing'

She cursed herself. She had slipped away to go to the ladies room for five minutes, and had obviously missed whatever the drunk man was talking about. Fowl boy obviously meant Artemis, and the last word was obvious too, but 'Fire girl'? She mulled over the mysterious names for a brief moment before slowly guiding the man towards a waiter.

'Can you help...Uh, what is your name?'

'Professor Enzo,' the drunk man replied, almost tottering into a group of gossiping women. Minerva sighed inwardly – she had much better things to do than sort out a drunken professor – before turning back to the waiter.

'Can you please sort out Professor Enzo?' she asked sweetly, but not without authority.

'Of course,' the waiter replied, leading the man out of the room.

Minerva continued her search for Artemis before joining the crowd of people filtering into the dining room. Dinner was about to start.

* * *

Artemis and Holly came into the dining room glowing. Not literally, of course, but many people felt an energy coming from them as they made their way to their seats.

Both he and Holly were seated at one end of the main table, along with Angeline, Artemis Senior, Myles and Beckett - Holly had been his friend for so long she deserved her place with the rest of the family – while other close friends filled up the rest of the table. Any other people ate at tables set out in the ballroom.

It is fair to say the dining room was never used much – it was large and empty when not filled with people, so the Fowls preferred to eat at a much smaller table near the kitchen. But on an occasion like this it was perfect.

Artemis and Holly sat down on their seats, and Holly stared around the room in wonder. The banquet table held about sixty people in total, who were all chatting to each other excitedly.

'How did they get everyone sitting in the right places?' she asked. But before Artemis had answered she knew how. In front of every person was a chocolate heart on a delicate wire stand, each with a name on it.

'You just have to...' Artemis began

'...follow your heart,' Holly finished. Angeline looked at them, obviously having heard their conversation. She shook her head, smiling.

'You two are even finishing each other's sentences now. What next?'

Artemis rolled his eyes, feeling slightly self-conscious. But he was happy, and that was all that mattered.

Wasn't it?

ATLANTIS MAXIMUM-SECURITY PRISON

Opal Koboi was enjoying herself. To a normal person, trying to break out of the most secure prison on Earth is possibly as far from fun as you can get, but Opal thought it was surprisingly like those mud man spy movies with the dodgy special effects.

The only thing that made this whole expedition possible in the first place was Opal's mountainous amount of money. She had managed to bribe some workers at the prison to help her break herself out, giving her a huge advantage. But it would still be one of the most difficult feats she had ever had to perform.

Opal carefully folded up the newspaper on her lap, before glancing at it one last time. It read:

_OPAL KOBOI IMPRISONED – FINALLY  
By Heather Coombs_

_We have all heard of the antics of Opal Koboi and her pixie sidekicks, but this time it seems she has been locked up for good. Yesterday, mud man Artemis Fowl and his bodyguard Butler were two of the main components in an unwarranted reconnaissance and retrieval mission to find the pixie, along with criminal Mulch Diggums. Another addition to the mission was Captain Holly Short, a newly resigned member of LEP Recon after she was falsely accused of murdering Commander Julius Root. By luck and teamwork, the unlikely group captured Opal Koboi, who is now being detained in the Atlantis Prison, the most secure prison on the planet. Journalists here at _The Haven Daily_ tried to get an interview with the heroes but –_

The rest of the article had been torn off – Opal didn't want to hear about their triumph over her. All she needed to know from the article was that the future version of herself was locked up in the very prison in front of her.

She checked her moonometer impatiently, waiting for the telltale knock on the door. It was a few minutes before she could hear a light tapping. She pulled a remote out from under her chair and pressed a button, opening newly added toughened glass airlock connected to the door.

The fairies who stepped in were almost polar opposites. One was a large and muscly elf with a big lower lip and a jutting out jaw, while the other was a light-figured sprite. It was clear they were built for the sea – both had fine gills at the sides of their necks and slightly webbed feet.

The airlock whirred as it was drained of water, before opening with a pneumatic hiss. The two fairies stepped through, and to Opals surprise, were followed by a third fairy.

Opal narrowed her eyes. 'Who is this? I asked for two people only'

The third fairy stepped forward and held out a hand. 'My name is Spikkle. I've heard a lot about you, Miss Koboi'

* * *

Dinner at Fowl Manor went perfectly to plan, besides a minor mishap concerning a white dress, red wine, and a rather apologetic waiter. Holly and Artemis spent almost the entire time talking, and it was easy to forget they were different species.

Artemis looked down at his now-empty plate which had once held Christmas pudding and custard. Everyone in the room looked completely full, including Holly sitting next to him. Holly slid her chair back and stood up.

'Can I meet you back in the ballroom after?' She whispered.

Artemis shrugged. 'Sure, see you then'. He watched as she exited the dining room. _She's probably gone to bathroom, _he thought.

He stood up and walked into the foyer, which was empty - everyone was either eating or in the ballroom. But someone was following him – he could hear footsteps behind him. Artemis spun around, expecting to see Holly, even though her hover-shoes made no sound.

Instead he turned to find Minerva. But something was wrong – he could feel the hairs at the back of his neck prickle ominously. He had learnt the hard way that human instinct was often right.

'Uh...Hi,' he greeted her awkwardly.

'Hi,' she replied, sounding slightly nervous. 'Enjoying the party?'

'Yes, it's going well. You?'

'Same,' Minerva agreed. 'Look, Artemis...'

'What?' He asked too quickly. Minerva sighed, then carried on talking.

'Artemis, I don't know if you realise this, but I've liked you for a long time. Ever since Hybras...'

Artemis nodded, deep down he always knew that. But he was still suddenly aware of how cold and empty the foyer seemed, compared to the bright lights of the ballroom and dining room.

'...anyway, Hybras changed my view on you. At first you were competition, like a rival, because of your intelligence. After that, I began to see you for who you are, not how high your IQ was'

Artemis didn't know what to say – he felt like he was locked into place. But still she continued.

'I started waiting every day for you to send me an email, a letter, _anything_ during those three years. So when I got the party invite, I was excited. Yet when you greeted me when I arrived, I didn't want to give anything away. I wanted to see how you would react if I told you. When I heard about this 'fire-girl' person, I realised you were already taken, your heart must belong to someone else'

'Wait a minute,' Artemis interrupted. 'Fire girl?'

Minerva ignored him, and continued talking. 'This may be the last time we ever meet as friends, and I know I can let you go. But I was always told that if you don't do something in life, you could live to regret it. So before I leave this party, I just wanted to do this.'

She leant forward and kissed Artemis.

A thousand thoughts were running through Artemis's head, but for once he couldn't organise them. He stayed rooted to the spot, feeling strangely helpless. He didn't like Minerva, he liked Holly...

'Artemis?'

Suddenly Minerva pulled away.

Holly was standing in the doorway, her eyes blazing.

'I thought you had changed,' Holly hissed. 'Thrown away all of those childhood fantasies. You couldn't be happy just with me, could you?'

'Holly...' Artemis started.

'Shut up, mud boy. I gave my heart to you. _I trusted you._'

'Holly, let me explain...'

'_There is nothing to explain_. You blew it, mud boy.'

'Holly, please,' Artemis walked towards her desperately. 'You don't understand...'

'Of course I understand, mud boy.' She strode towards the front door. Artemis tried to grab her arm.

In a flash, he found himself stumbling backwards, smashing into an old wooden cabinet near the front door. Holly had pushed him. As his mind tumbled into darkness he thought he saw a fleeting glimpse of Holly running out the door, crystalline tears falling from her cheeks.

'Holly!' Artemis called feebly. _'Holly...' _

Authors note:

I would like to give big apologies for smashing up Holly and Artemis's relationship for now, but it isn't quite over yet...Anyway, the story was getting boring and needed a shock. Also, I promise everyone that I will end this story properly, without one of those endings that make you feel like there was no point reading the story in the first place. But there's still heaps more of the story to go, so please review!

Also, once again, apologies for my slowness, it is inexcusable :(

Now, REVIEW!


	14. Broken Hearts

Sorry about all the time it took for me to get this chapter out - I've been studying for exams and had to push fanfiction to the side for a bit. I'm hoping to get this finished on cue for Christmas, so I'd better get a move on. Enjoy and review, please :)

* * *

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN

Artemis lay on the floor of the foyer, feeling the cold of the marble spread like icy tendrils along his skin. But even despite his fall and the throbbing lump that had now appeared at the back of his head, he recovered quickly. His brilliant mind refused to be restrained by unconsciousness, but his thoughts still felt slow, like he was waking up from a long sleep.

'Artemis, are you alright? I'm so sorry – I...' He opened his eyes to see Minerva. There was genuine concern and regret on her face, but he didn't care. He stood up shakily, ignoring Minerva's offer for help.

'Nothing to see here,' he said to the small crowd of people who had gathered around him, trying to sound calm. His thoughts were clearer now, and the panic of losing Holly was starting to set in.

'Are you sure we can't help you in any way?' Asked one by-stander innocently, before hurriedly shuffling away at Artemis's expression. Everyone else scattered.

'Artemis...we can find her, I promise, I can explain to her...'

Artemis turned to Minerva, her eyes full of remorse. He wanted to forgive the fifteen-year-old girl, but couldn't bring himself to it. When he next spoke, his voice was cold.

'You may leave now. Haven't you done enough?'

Minerva didn't answer. Instead she burst into tears, and ran out the door, sobbing.

Finally Artemis's brain kicked fully into gear. Grieving wasn't going to do anything – he knew that; he had to find Holly before she did anything stupid. For all he knew, once she was underground he might never see her again.

He grabbed the Bentley's keys from the sideboard, before making his way out the front door. Suddenly a large hand gripped his shoulder. It was Butler.

'This is your only chance, you know,' the manservant said quietly, so as not to be overheard. Artemis realised Butler would have seen the entire thing – he had been stationed by the door for most of the party to stop uninvited guests from entering. 'I'll drive you to Tara'

Artemis looked at him gratefully. 'Thanks, Butler'

The atmosphere in the car was still noticeably tense, even though Artemis had a clear plan mapped out in his head.

_What if she isn't there? They'll never let me into Haven..._ Doubtful thoughts confronted him constantly. _Or what if she won't listen? What if...?_

He shook his head angrily. Being negative wasn't going to do anything. He pulled out a pocket Sudoku out of the glove box to help calm himself down, but he couldn't focus on the numbers. He shoved it back, frustrated. The Bentley was no doubt faster than Holly, but the road was windy and uneven, while Holly had a straight run across the fields. Artemis decided to voice his worries.

'Are you sure we can beat her there?' he asked.

'To tell the truth, I don't even know how she's going to get there without help –Tara is a long way to run to,' Butler comforted. 'She might not get there for hours'

Artemis shook his head. 'Fairies have much better stamina than humans – I suspect Holly would be able to travel for a very long time before she gets too exhausted. She told me that she renewed her magic today as well, so in theory she would be able to repair any injuries.' He frowned, premature lines appearing across his forehead. 'There isn't much we can do except drive faster'

Butler stamped down on the accelerator, nodding approvingly as the Bentley let out a throaty roar in response. 'Certainly, Artemis'

Artemis retrieved a map from under one of the back seats of the car, and slowly started tracing a route through the countryside. Butler couldn't help watching as he systematically worked through equations, not even bothering with a calculator. After a few minutes of silence, he circled a figure and showed the map to Butler.

'I've traced out two basic routes, the one in blue is ours, the one in red is Holly.' Butler nodded, but didn't interrupt. 'I have done some calculations, and assuming I was knocked out for approximately ten minutes, Holly had a bit of a head-start. But once I factored in the speed of the car compared to Holly, we should arrive there at least four minutes before her. If there are no obstacles,' he added.

Artemis instantly knew he had spoken too soon. He could hear an approaching wailing noise, and flickering red-and-blue lights were beginning to flash across the rear-vision mirrors.

'I'm going over the speed limit,' Butler told Artemis. 'They're onto us.'

Butler could almost hear Artemis's brain working.

'We have three options,' Artemis sighed. 'Option number one; you hop out and pulverise the police officers. Number two; we try to outrun them. And number three...'

'What?' Butler asked desperately – the police car was gaining on them.

'I run,' said Artemis quickly, before opening the door and jumping out of the car, ignoring Butler's shouts resounding into the night air.

* * *

ATLANTIS MAXIMUM SECURITY PRISON

'Why are you here?' Opal asked Spikkle suspiciously. 'This operation has to run perfectly. _Everything must run to plan.'_

Spikkle didn't look worried. 'It will, Miss Koboi. That I can promise you'

'What makes you so sure?'

'Let me explain something. I have been working on the Atlantean military for ages, and helped design most of this prison. I know it like the back of my hand.'

'Why then, are you helping me break into it?'

Spikkle smiled mysteriously. 'Let's just say I have a bit of a...er, grudge against a particular person in the LEP. If you help me, ah..._exterminate_ him, I'll help you enter the prison'

'And why should I do that?' Opal hissed. 'We can manage on our own, thank you very much'

Spikkle sighed and shook his head. 'No you can't. The security is far too tight – there's millions of ways to get yourself killed in there. Not even these security guards have been in the centre of the prison'

Opal looked doubtful, but seemed to take his word for it. 'Fine. It's a deal. Archie, go fetch the suits'

A few seconds later the small pixie reappeared, carrying a precariously balanced pile of suits, each in the same deep blue colour. He handed everyone one before retreating back to the pilot's seat. They were parked several thousand feet below the surface of the ocean in Opal's stealth shuttle - which had been modified specially for the purpose – preparing their break into the most secure prison in the world.

_Am I mad? _Wondered Archie sadly. _For as long as Opal is around, I will never be able to have a real life._ He shook the thought away, before checking to make sure the shields were working correctly.

Opal adjusted her sealed helmet, taking in a deep breath. Sterile, artificial air filled her lungs, and she shuddered with anticipation.

The airlock opened smoothly, allowing her to step out into the open sea - flanked by the two security guards, with Spikkle leading the way. She wasn't entirely pleased about these recent developments, but didn't protest.

The pressure of the tonnes of water above them was absolute – only their specially designed suits and previous exposure had prevented them crumpling like paper bags.

'Testing, testing, over,' came a slightly static voice through her earpiece. 'One, two, three, testing'

'Cut that out!' Opal snapped. 'You should all know perfectly well my equipment can function properly. Or do you doubt me?'

'No,' replied the voice. It sounded too calm and precise to be one of the dim-looking security guards, so she assumed it was Spikkle. 'But all equipment must still be tested...'

'Don't you lecture me!' hissed Opal, feeling her violent temper building. But she couldn't lose the know-it-all elf now, he was far too valuable. 'Just tell me how we get in this wretched prison! And turn on your shields, we can't be spotted'

Opal watched as the fairies all blended away into the background, before turning on her anti-shield filter on her helmet. Everyone else promptly came back into focus. To anyone but each other, they were invisible.

The prison was anything but a stereotype – it was a large sugar-cube-like structure, made of a deep green marble in the usual Atlantean fashion. But it was the walls which surrounded the building that really made it special. The inner complex was surrounded by what looked like a giant dome of glass 50cm thick, but Opal knew better. Still, Spikkle began to explain it to her.

'The domes surrounding the main building are actually made of a thick plexiglass – at about 50cm thick they are virtually inescapable. The only way in or out is through one door,' he pointed to an outline on the glass, almost invisible.

Opal approached the door outline, her palm hovering inches away from its surface. It was jelly-like, seeming to reach towards her enticingly. She quickly withdrew her hand.

'Smart-glass,' she breathed. 'I've been trying to get hold of this for years'

'Correct,' confirmed Spikkle confidently. 'It reads DNA - if it identifies a prisoner passing through it, they may as well have asked for a death sentence'

Opal narrowed her eyes curiously, waiting for Spikkle to continue. He ploughed on obligingly.

'Basically, if you step through it and it identifies the DNA of a prisoner, it will solidify with them in it,' he shuddered unnecessarily. 'If it detects people who aren't prisoners - just visitors – it will let them through, but set off the main alarm'

Opal didn't look disgusted like Spikkle - you could even go as far to say she was slightly amused. 'Serves them right,' she laughed; an awful tinkly laugh that sent shivers down Spikkle's spine. 'They're just a bunch of lowlife criminals'

_So are you,_ Spikkle resisted pointing out. _Actually, you're probably the worst of them all._ Instead, he said, 'I've hacked the system and added our names to the list of permitted fairies, if it worked, we will be able to get through it with no trouble at all'

'And if we don't...'

'Seeing as your DNA is – or was – on the criminal list, you could be sealed in glass within seconds,' he told her.

He instantly knew he had said the wrong thing. In a flash he found himself pushed to the ground by Opal. 'If you have done this wrong,' she hissed through gritted teeth. 'I will kill you. Or these two will anyway.' She gestured towards the two security guards, who were standing stiffly either side of her.

'I will bet my entire life savings that it will work. I guarantee it' Spikkle said tremulously.

'How come you're so sure?' Opal questioned.

'I have my ways,' he replied, before carefully avoiding the topic. 'Come on. We need to make this fast'

Opal looked slightly tetchy, but sighed and walked straight through the glass. It was in odd sensation – even through her suit she could feel the jelly-like substance moulding around her form. It was a delicate moment, but was relieved to find the substance not changing from its usual state. Relief flooded her she stepped out the other side. Spikkle and the security guards quickly followed suit, all passing safely without incident. The main complex was where they had to be careful – security guards patrolled the area in an almost robotic fashion, constantly alert.

'The guards swap every fifteen minutes,' one of the security guards Opal had employed whispered nervously, talking for the first time. 'It's so they don't get tired'

'Makes sense,' said Opal offhandedly. Suddenly her tone turned serious. 'Please address me as Miss Koboi next time'

'Yes, Miss Koboi,' replied the guard, bowing deeply.

'Now, I've disabled the DNA cannons,' Spikkle told Opal, daintily ignoring her request, 'but we have to watch out for other traps – when I say stop, you must stop'

For once Opal didn't object. Briskly they walked towards the green marble building, just as a slow drone began to fill the air.

* * *

TARA, IRELAND

There were no tears as Holly ran across the field – but inside she was breaking. With every step she took, she felt a bit more of herself fall to pieces.

_How did this happen? _She asked herself sadly. _It was so perfect..._

The problem was; she just couldn't stop thinking about it. The vision of Artemis kissing Minerva, then his shocked expression afterwards clouded through her mind. Normally she would just flop down in the long grass in one of the fields and try to just focus on nature instead, but she knew even that wouldn't clear her head.

'Could it have really worked?' she wondered aloud. 'Or was I just so overcome with love I could never see the truth?'

But she couldn't find the answer to either question.

The familiar outline of the bush covering the entrance to the Tara shuttle port sent both relief and rising panic rocketing through her. Once she was on that shuttle back to Haven, she would never see Artemis again – she could accept the rank of Major, and that would be the end of it. Few trips to the surface, enough money to buy herself a decent house and a big boost of control over LEP's reconnaissance squad could be her ticket to happiness. Or so she hoped.

Holly glanced around once more, and to her relief there was no sign of Artemis. But one tiny, infinitesimal part of her almost wished he would jump out. Yet he hadn't appeared so far – Holly had to assume he was still huddled on the floor of the foyer, feeling sorry for himself. Somehow she couldn't draw any satisfaction out of this thought.

As she turned and looked at the fields of Tara, it seemed she could hear a whisper of words in the wind; '_Holly, Holly, please don't go, Holly!'_

Holly sighed, trying to convince herself the voice was just an illusion. With an air of finality, Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon unit stepped through the barrier, not looking back.

* * *

Artemis stumbled across the rough grass, his hands stinging. His jump out of the Bentley had been not at all graceful – he was now covered with cuts and now had a few more bruises to add into the mix.

His heart pounded hard against his chest – he could see Holly at the far side of the field, standing near the holographic bush used to disguise Tara shuttle port. His body was working into overdrive, even though he knew he wouldn't make it. In desperation he stopped running and hollered; 'Holly, Holly, please don't go, Holly!'

Yet it seemed to be of no use – besides pausing for a moment, Holly didn't react to the sound. Artemis cursed as she slipped into the bush. Even though his hopes of catching her outside had been dashed, he still had a chance. And everything hinged on Foaly. Two years ago Artemis had been told he was allowed into the Tara shuttle port without being shut out by the external DNA sensors, and now it was the only hope that remained.

In an agonising sprint, he crossed the rest of the distance then slipped through the barrier. He was safe.

Tara was strangely deserted – only the odd few stragglers hung around, waiting for the next shuttle to take them to Haven. A small auburn-haired fairy in a red dress was huddled in one of the seats at the back of the terminal, tears dripping from the end of her nose. Artemis resisted the urge to call out to her, instead calmly walking up and holding out a hand to her sobbing figure, batting away a gnome asking for a visa. It was a peaceful gesture, but he doubted it would work.

'Holly,' he started. 'I'm so sorry. It was...awful of me. I should have made it more clear to Minerva that I didn't like her'

For a moment Holly looked up in surprise at who was speaking, before converting it into cold fury. 'Get away from me!' she screeched in a most uncharacteristic way. She stood up, magic sparking ominously. 'You're nothing but a lying piece of filth!'

'Holly, you don't understand! I...'

'Don't understand?' She hissed, her temper boiling over. 'You think I _don't understand_?'

'I mean...' started Artemis, tripping over his words.

'I went out with Trouble Kelp when I was at the Academy,' Holly confirmed a point Artemis had suspected for a long time. 'We went out for three years. And you know why I broke up with him?' Artemis shook his head nervously. 'I caught him kissing Lili Frond on the night before my graduation. He blamed it on alcohol,' she said bitterly. Artemis felt like hanging his head in shame. The story fit – it was probably the reason Holly always called Lili 'nothing but a bimbo'.

'I'm so sorry,' he apologised. 'But the thing is...' Holly pretended not to hear him.

'I couldn't look at him for the next few years – the pain was just too acute. I was scared to expose my feelings for you in case the same thing happened,' she paused and turned away. 'I was right. All men are the same. And I thought you might be different'

'But I didn't choose to...'

'You did!' she snapped. 'You did, Artemis Fowl, and that's the thought you will carry with you to the grave'

Artemis never realised what was happening until it was too late. Their shouting match had brought them right to the edge of chute E1, Holly only a few millimetres away from toppling into the vast chasm. Before he knew it, she had disappeared over the side.

'Holly!' he cried. She was dangling over the swirls of magma, suspended only by her own hands clutching the ledge. 'Hold on!'

Her hand grabbed his for a few seconds, but it was impossible to hold on. Holly looked up at him with her hazel eyes as if trying to convey a message he couldn't decipher, before letting her fingers slip away from his, closing her eyes as she plummeted into the fiery depths below.

* * *

A/N: Anyway, R&R people, then I'll write faster! Also, check out my latest story "The Other Artemis"

Thanks :)


	15. The Empty Casket

A/N: Yay! Finally the next chapter's out, and I only have one message for you all. Please DO NOT give up immediately after the first section. I promise you, things will work out. Thanks, and please review!

* * *

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND

A small group of figures huddled in the rain-swept darkness as a casket was pulled down a narrow aisle. It looked tiny, as if it should have belonged to a child. But it was empty – there were no remains to be found of the mourned figure that should have been inside it. A solitary teenager stood at the head of the group, his head bowed as if in prayer. His raven black hair was lank and greasy, and his deep blue eyes gave the impression of someone who had just stopped caring. His neatly pressed suit looked out of place, and his face looked gaunt, as if he had lost too much weight in a short amount of time.

The funeral was simple – no frills, no prayers, no over-the-top hats. If it weren't for the entirely monochromatic attire and driving rain, someone could almost mistake it for a normal gathering. In the middle of the ceremony stood a wooden podium, its edging engraved with what looked like miniscule fairies. A muscly elf stood on a stool so as to be seen over the microphone.

'Holly was more than a captain, a police officer. She was a friend, a beacon, someone you could trust your life. She will stay in our hearts forever,' Commander Trouble Kelp broke off with a noise that sounded suspiciously like a sob, although no one could be sure he hadn't just sneezed at the wrong time.

He stepped out from behind the podium having finished his brief speech, before signalling to the pale youth in the front row, who walked up to take his place. He looked even thinner behind the podium, the dim lighting accentuating his slightly sunken cheeks. His formerly confident manner seemed to have evaporated – he was merely a shell of his former self.

"We are brought here today by one person – a...,' for once in his life Artemis Fowl faltered. He didn't want to go on. It was as if the stares of all the family and friends gathered around the small, empty casket – Butler, Foaly, Trouble Kelp, Angeline, Myles and Beckett, as well as many more recon officers – had woken a sharp realisation that pushed away the numbness. Holly was gone. And even surrounded by all these people, he had never felt so alone.

He took a deep breath before beginning to speak, once again. "We are brought here today by one person – an elf with a heart who saved me countless times, despite personal risk. Even in times when I was at my worst, she never gave up on me. I am talking about Holly Short.

'I am the only person who saw what happened that night. I decided I could hide the truth from the people standing before me, yet I refrained from writing a speech based upon lies. It is everyone's right to know the truth.' He paused for a moment, gathering his breath, before beginning to recount the moments of that fateful night. Everyone looked shocked as he told them of how she had run from him after she had seen him kissing Minerva, how she had run through the fields all the way to Tara, how she'd plummeted off the edge into the hungry earth. How he'd at first expected her to fly up and punch him on the shoulder, laughing at how much of a scare she'd given him. But no elf arose that night.

Whispering was now starting to rustle through the group, and Artemis saw many imploring eyes turned on him, not sure what to think of the news.

'I loved her,' he choked, reality crashing down on him like water bursting from a dam. He had killed her. If he had never followed her, she would have been alive. And for the first time in his life, tears gushing down the cheeks of the pale youth in silent streams. If he was still that obnoxious twelve-year-old boy who had kidnapped a fairy by an old oak tree in Tara, he would have been ashamed of himself, but now he truly didn't care. Nothing mattered anymore.

He stepped down from the podium; conscious of the crowd's shocked stares following him as he made his way back towards Fowl Manor. Holly's real fairy recycling ceremony had been held with another empty casket underground, but Artemis had wanted to throw a proper funeral for her above ground.

The only member of the Fowl family absent was Father – Artemis didn't know how he would react to the sudden discovery of the People. Myles and Beckett were still too young to know much different, and Angeline already knew about Holly after she had been possessed by Opal Koboi six months previously, so they had been invited. Father was currently on a climate-change conference for Ireland's top ten richest families, with no idea what was taking place on the Fowl grounds.

Artemis walked through the Manor absent-mindedly, his thoughts still back with the night when Holly had fallen. Some part of him still wondered whether some passing shuttle could have caught her as she neared the bottom of the chute, but with the magma flare that burst up shortly after, he highly doubted it. Big mistake.

* * *

THE LUNCHROOM, ATLANTIS PRISON

Snicker was once again on lunch duty. How many times he had to be stuck behind the lunch trolley serving reconstituted beans to prisoners, he didn't know, but the job was really starting to make him long in the tooth.

'Stop that!' he snickered at a couple of brawling Gnomes having it out in a corner. One of them landed one last punch in the gut before sloping off. No one messed with Snicker.

Of course, Snicker hadn't always been under that name – he was named as Henry Pooter III by his now very sorry parents. At his manhood ceremony he had changed his name to Snicker due to the fact he could never talk without sounding like he was mocking someone. He hadn't spoken normally since his parents had been "accidentally" run over by a transport hover-shuttle. Arrested under charges of murder and torture, he was one of the most notorious criminals in Atlantis. Besides one other.

The present-day Opal was not looking good. Her eyes were slightly sunken and she seemed to have lost weight, but a certain fire everyone steered clear of still burned in her eyes. That was why Snicker was always stuck on lunch duty – he would much rather be serving gloop than have to approach Opal in a bad mood.

Snicker forced another pile of mulch on to an almost innocent-looking pixies plate, recognising him as another of Opal's slaves. Although criminals themselves, many of the pixies at Atlantis prison seemed to wait on Opal's every need. He wasn't surprised when the pixie didn't eat the food himself, instead bringing it to Opal, who just looked at it disdainfully.

'Beans again,' she screeched loudly. 'Don't I deserve any _respect_?'

No one pointed out that, seeing as she herself gave others any respect, she certainlydidn't deserve it. Not a single soul in the facility would be _that_ stupid.

Snicker noticed her glance enviously at the tinted glass panel indented into the north wall, where four guards sat, mockingly eating their vegeburgers and nettle salads while they watched over the prisoners. Opal had once tried flirting with one of the guards in hope of decent food, but to her disgust it hadn't worked. In fact, Opal had tried many things during her stay at Atlantis Prison.

The first thing she had done was tried to knock out the officer leading her into the prison, which had failed on account of the seventeen buzz batons all aimed at her. The next thing she attempted was somewhat more planned – trying to sneak into the recycler truck that passed through the prison monthly, encased in a giant barrel of out-of-date pickles. The plan had failed, and what was worse had to be the fact she smelt of gherkin for the next week.

Many more attempted escapades followed, but eventually Opal seemed to finally calm down and stop. The pixie appeared to have finally realised something that was already apparent – Atlantis Prison was impenetrable. _From the inside, anyway,_ thought Snicker as he plopped another glob of beans onto a tray.

Suddenly, four things happened at once. The first thing that happened was the guards, who had all been intently looking at the prisoners, were face-down in their meals, snoring gently. Opal jumped up from where she had been demurely sitting, her black hair flying as she spun out of the way of a sudden laser burst. An alarm growing ever louder droned, as doors began to fly shut. Then Snicker was falling towards the rapidly approaching ground, and the scene faded like wisps of a forgotten dream.

* * *

What appeared to be seventeen Opals were now racing through and around Atlantis prison, wreaking havoc. Of course, there weren't really seventeen Opals – fifteen of them were just carefully calibrated holograms thrown up from mini-projectors zooming about the place, all fashioned by Opal herself. They were one of her brainchild ideas, as it was almost impossible to discern a holographic Opal from the real pixie.

Past Opal had barely shoved a water suit into present Opal's arms before running through the airlock, past the guards, and through the jelly-barrier back to the shuttle, the rest of the rescue group in tow. Any booby traps had been disabled by Spikkle, and what with all the holographic-Opals running around, no guard got within inches of them.

Present Opal, however, hadn't been so lucky. One of her prison pixie followers had grabbed her arm as she ran past, looking at her beseechingly.

'Can I please come?' he pleaded. 'I can serve you...'

'Get off me, filth!' she screeched, attempting to shake him off. But foolishly he hung on.

'Please! I'll do anything! I can...'

'_Get off of me!'_ she screamed, her rage becoming so great she almost looked inhuman. '_Not only do you plead, but you grab me with your filthy hands! You'll make me wrinkle!!'_

'But I...'

'No! Get off me!' she twisted away from him so violently she thought she heard one of his bones snap. With a fleeting glance back at the prison, she ran her way towards the waiting shuttle.

* * *

The two Opals were sitting side by side, a box of chocolate truffles between them. Their feet were both propped up on red pouffes, and the recently-rescued Opal had changed out of her regulation prison uniform. She looked more menacing already.

'Archie!' yelled Past-Opal. 'Drive faster!'

Present-Opal laughed derisively. How she loved having another person who enjoyed ordering others around as much as she did. And someone who appreciated the wonders of chocolate truffles. But she couldn't read her past self's thoughts, so she decided to ask her something she had been wondering ever since the engine had started on the stealth shuttle.

'Where are we...'

'...going?' finished Past-Opal. 'I was going to take you back to my hideout – if you can call it that, such a crude name – it has one of the best thermal spa pools on the market. But we may have to take a little...detour.'

Present-Opal didn't mind. If she knew herself as well as she thought, what was going to happen next wasn't worth missing.

* * *

CHUTE E1, TARA

Holly was falling. It wasn't that dream-like fall you find in storybooks, with a slow air thermal flowing gently and a sweeping calm – this was a full-on adrenaline rush, something mud man thrill seekers continuously strived to achieve by jumping off bridges attached to elastic ropes. But Holly didn't have any rope to cling on to.

She was tossed about the chute on hot gusts of air with no wings strapped to her back to save her. It was a weird, empty feeling – not being able to steer herself away from the rocky walls every time she came scarily close to it. It was unsettling.

The truth was; Holly feared something more than dying. And that thing was that Artemis hadn't understood her final glance, her final act of peace. She was scared she hadn't made her forgiveness strong enough, especially when one of the last things she said was; '_You did, Artemis Fowl, and that's the thought you will carry with you to the grave.'_

The only thing that prevented tears from making their way down her cheeks was the billowing wind hitting her. The fire below was creeping ever closer, and all she could think of was the people who she had never said goodbye to. Foaly, Commander Kelp, Butler, Mulch...and Artemis. She never had said a proper goodbye. And by the looks of it, never would.

Holly Short closed her eyes as the swirling magma neared her, bubbling ominously.

It is at this point it must be emphasised just how long chute E1 was. Like all magma chutes, it drilled essentially right through the earth, meaning it stretched for kilometres. So at first Holly barely noticed the sudden updraft of air suspending her, preventing her fall. But as she realised she still wasn't being plunged into magma, she slowly opened her eyes.

She was floating on a cushion of air which appeared to be coming out of...nothing. All that was beneath her was the firey innards of the earth. She glanced up, but the sheer length of the tunnel meant Artemis was now completely out of sight. She couldn't see him, he couldn't see her.

Holly experimentally moved an arm, to find herself suddenly pitching sideways. She steadied herself, resolving not to move again without careful planning. It was time for tactics now – she may not be a master strategist like Artemis, but she could still think.

She was approximately two metres from the side of the chute; if the magma flares held out she could possible shuffle her way to the side. She was about to risk it when a magnified voice began to echo around the tunnel.

'Don't move.'

Holly stopped abruptly, trying to source the location of the voice. It seemed to be coming from _below _her.

'We have come to rescue you,' boomed the voice. Suddenly a hatch opened beneath Holly, seemingly from thin air, and she toppled forward.

'So glad you could join us,' said one voice, suddenly high-pitched. 'We phoned, but nobody was home.'

Holly looked up to find herself staring into the faces of, not one, but two Opal Koboi's.

* * *

A/N: Hoped you liked it, and if you want to see the next chapter get out quickly, please review! I got this finished twice as quickly thanks to everyone who reviewed for the last chapter, so whether it's a mindless 'update now!' or a 'cool', send it in. The longer the better though :)

Oh, and no flaming please.

*Flamers shuffle away, looking disappointed*


	16. Dead or Alive?

**A/N: Ok, shortish chapter here. Sorry about the wait, but I hope you enjoy it :) You should also thank Tammerly for reminding me to finish this; otherwise I may not have gotten around to publishing it until next weekend.

* * *

**

**OPAL'S SHUTTLE, CHUTE E1, TARA**

Holly recoiled as one of the Opals swooped down on her, attempting to cuff her hands. But Holly wasn't having a bar of it. She swung her feet around so she was lying on the floor, each foot aimed at an Opal, her hands protectively hidden from sight. Both the Opals sighed in unison.

'So typical,' said one.

'Yes,' agreed the other. 'Just a little tip, my dear LEP officer. Keep an eye on who's _behind _you.'

Before Holly could react, she was hoisted up by strong, warm hands. She briefly thought this person behind her could be friendly, when pressure cuffs were clamped to her wrist. She spun around.

'_You!'_ she exclaimed, surprised.

'Oh yes,' said Spikkle, 'Me.' Holly glanced about wildly, as if expecting to see more good-elves-gone-bad jumping out, but the only other figure on board the shuttle appeared to be a small pixie in the driver's seat.

'But...,' Holly started. She was confused. She thought Spikkle was a good guy. In his casual jeans-and-shirt getup he was the last person she expected to be in on a plot to ruin the world. But there he was, solid and real. 'But you were...'

'Foaly's slave? Yes I was. I got sick of it – constantly being bossed about, always having him whinnying in my ear about how he doubted anyone could become as good as _him._ And what's more, my first task of the day was to bring him carrots. _Carrots_.' He sighed deeply. 'I was a genius, I deserved better than what he gave me. So one day I just quit. And when I did, he just told me that hopefully the next apprentice would be a bit smarter.'

Even in the situation she was stuck in, Holly couldn't believe Foaly would ever do such a thing. 'Liar,' she told him firmly. 'I don't believe you.' Spikkle just grinned in response.

'No matter. By the end of this I plan to ruin Foaly's reputation.'

Both Opals scowled, but the present Opal was the one to speak. 'If your mind is too small to remember, _civilian_, we are the ones in charge here.' She glanced at her other self. 'Or as to say, I am.'

Spikkle scowled back. 'You owe me, Opal. Without me, you would be encased in glass by now. Who knows what repercussions could be felt in the future.'

Hostility cracked electrically through the air, making Holly squirm. 75% of the people in the room were mentally unstable, and the last thing she needed was to be caught in a firefight on a shuttle hovering over magma. She decided to diffuse the situation. 'So,' she said, almost conversationally. She could taunt the Opals later when they were safely under lock and key. Even though fairies had ceased to use conventional locks several millennia ago. 'What plan have you got cooked up this time?'

'If you think I am just going to give you that information, elf, you are seriously deluded. Who knows what bugs you have on you?' Past-Opal pulled out a short metal rod from a concealed cabinet and fondled it lovingly, like Foaly often did with his most prized inventions. 'This is a highly advanced bug-sweeper. It is specially made, so it can detect any fairy bugs, including Foaly's. It even detects weapons.'

Past-Opal passed the bug-sweeper over Holly's form, a slow smile spreading over her face. 'Hand me the Neutrino.' She held out her hand. 'Now.'

Holly reluctantly handed over the tiny weapon which had been strapped to her leg, along with a tiny throat mic Opal had also discovered. Besides that, she had no more communications. But something still gave her a spark of hope. Artemis's unopened present was also strapped to her leg, and there was a tiny chance that whatever Artemis had given her could aid her in some way. Luckily, Opal's bug sweeper hadn't seemed to detect it. She let out a subconscious sigh of relief.

'What are you so pleased about?' asked Present-Opal. 'It isn't as if you can escape.' She giggled madly, crushing the throat mic in her fist. 'I have quite a good plan for you.'

'Helped by the fact Fowl already thinks you're dead. We piggybacked one of Foaly's cameras at the Tara shuttle port. Such melodrama.' She pulled a face and put on a false, whimpery voice. '_Holly, you don't understand! I'm so sorry!'_

Holly concealed her anger. She wanted to pounce on the megalomaniac, but refrained from doing so. Instead she gazed up towards the ceiling, as if she could see through it. Somewhere up there, Artemis stood, thinking of her as being dead.

'And you know the worst thing?' asked Opal nastily. 'To the observer, It looks like little Artemis pushed you to your death. If I don't get the mud boy, the LEP will.'

W_ill he know I'm alive?_ Holly wondered. _Maybe he will know. He is a genius.

* * *

_

**FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND, ONE MONTH LATER**

Butler was concerned. His charge had barely left his room in a month, only making appearances at family meetings or dinnertimes. Even then, he would often just sit alone and answer questions in incoherent or single-syllable sentences. It was most unlike the Irish genius to express his grief like this – generally he would just plot or exploit someone to keep himself busy.

The manservant finished pouring a cup of tea and buttering scones, arranging them on a wooden tray next to small ramekins of jam and cream. Balancing it expertly on his arm, with a newspaper in his other hand, he strode from the kitchen to Artemis's door, which was firmly shut and locked. The tray of food he had left earlier sat untouched on the floor.

He sighed and bent to pick it up, then hesitated. Why was he avoiding Artemis like this? For all he knew, the boy just needed someone to talk to. Butler considered for a moment, then hammered on the door.

'Come in,' said a voice emptily. Butler immediately complied.

Artemis was once again sitting at his computer, but he had minimised whatever he was working on, so Butler wasn't sure on exactly _what._ He didn't question, however. He knew Artemis well enough to know he probably wouldn't tell him anyway.

'What do you want, old friend?' asked the boy. The question seemed casual enough, but his voice didn't carry much feeling.

'I'm worried about you,' admitted Butler. 'You have taken this even more badly than I have.'

Butler had been thrown into full grief when he heard about the death of his fallen fairy comrade, leaving him wandering aimlessly for a good week or two. But Artemis had outshone him by far, and Butler wasn't happy.

'You may have loved her,' said Butler rationally, 'but whether you had feelings for her as a friend or lover, I don't know. All I know is, you have to let it go.'

'Sorry Butler, but I must now continue with my work. Can you please leave the scones and tea on the table?' Artemis gestured vaguely towards a table where it would probably never get touched. He looked thin from lack of food, but Butler swore he saw something, determination maybe, in the boy's eye.

_It must be my mind playing up,_ thought Butler. _What on earth would a bereaved fifteen-year-old genius have to be determined about?_

* * *

Genius or not, Artemis Fowl was struggling. His logic told him there was only a miniscule chance Holly had survived, yet his subconscious still seemed to stick to the tiny possibility that she was still alive and kicking. So even though the funeral had done nothing but drain his hopes a bit further, he decided to hack the LEP mainframe.

It was by no means easy, but Artemis was a natural. All he had to do was tweak his handy hacking program he had developed for piggybacking satellites, and readjust it to LEP settings. Soon every LEP document was laid out on his Powerbook screen, from police reports to criminal records.

_How unsurprising,_ he thought, clicking a 20GB file labelled '**ARTEMIS FOWL'** in block capitals_. Even though I've gone good, they still have to keep a file on me._

To tell the truth, he knew why that folder was still in the 'High risk criminals' section well before he even opened the digital folder. Even though he had anticipated it, the words contained in that folder shocked him. He scrolled through the broad paragraphs of text, taking in all the information. One paragraph was particularly memorable.

It appeared to be a computerised version of a newspaper article, most likely from _The Haven Times._

"_Artemis Fowl, a criminal by nature, has proven that the ways of the mud men are not as easy to eradicate as once thought. Following the death of Captain Holly Short, the LEP have uncovered the footage showing what took place before Short plummeted into the magma below chute E1, Tara. Taken from one of the various LEP cameras positioned around the shuttle port, the video clearly shows Captain Short being herded to the edge by the mud boy, before toppling off the edge, where she is briefly held up by the human. In a cold-hearted manner, Fowl simply lets go and allows the decorated elf to plummet to a fiery death. This incident is also thought to possibly coincide with the escape of deranged pixie-turned-human Opal Koboi. The LEP are arranging a meeting to decide the fate of the mud boy, who is claiming it to be nothing more than an accident."_

Artemis frowned. If Opal Koboi had escaped, anything was possible. He needed an ally in the equation, as the LEP were clearly no longer on his side. He found a number in the contact list of his fairy communicator and dialled it. After a long ringtone, a voice became clear on the other end of the line.

'Fowl?' said the voice. 'I'm a bit busy here.'

It sounded like Mulch Diggums had wasted no time in going back to detective work – the fairy medics had healed his burns within hours and he was now back out on the streets. Artemis hinged his entire plan on one fact – that Mulch didn't believe the LEP.

'Do you trust me?' was the first thing the Irish boy asked the dwarf.

'Huh?'

'Mulch, do you trust me? Or do you believe those journalists of _The Haven Times_?'

'Hmm, let's see...ex-criminal mud boy or protectors of Haven city? Ex-criminal mud boy, any day.'

'In that case, I was wondering if I could ask of a small favour? Paid, of course.'

'What do you have in mind?'

* * *

**OPERATIONS BOOTH, HAVEN CITY**

'I'm telling you, Fowl didn't do it.'

Foaly kneaded his eyes with his fist, flicking his tail angrily. He was annoyed and frustrated, having spent the entire last three days after Holly's above-ground funeral trying to convince the higher-ups that Artemis was innocent. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to be working.

'Replay the tape,' ordered a particularly adamant council-member. 'In slow-motion too.'

Foaly sighed, putting on his unappreciated-genius face. He twiddled a few dials and manipulated the video with his v-keyboard.

He hated the video. Replaying it over and over again sure wasn't helping his bad mood either. His cameras showed a tall individual compared to the fairies, obviously Fowl. The mud-boy was talking to Holly, walking forwards as he did so. Holly was shuffling back, oblivious to the massive chasm behind her. She simply slipped over the edge, Artemis grabbing her hand for a brief second, before letting go.

But even with all this footage at his fingertips, Foaly was not convinced. Artemis's speech at the funeral had proved how much he had loved her, and Artemis had changed enough to not ever tell such a big lie to the fairy people and his family, bad or not. Foaly could also not help noticing that when he was talking to Holly at the shuttle port just before she fell, Artemis seemed stressed and worried rather than angry or murderous.

_Rolling eyes, flapping arms, the whole Fowl thing_. Foaly felt sudden stabs of pain as he recalled one of Holly's quips from after returning back from time with the lemur. He shook it off. Holly was dead now, and no-one could do anything about it.

But one particular mud-boy was just about to change that.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! Remember to review, it always makes me write faster, as well as brightening up my day, so everyone wins!**


	17. Locket

**That was officially one of the hardest AF chapters I have ever written. Don't ask why – I don't even know myself – but I've finally finished it and that's all that matters...isn't it? Hopefully chapter eighteen will be easier, and FAR longer : )**

**Now, here are the reasons why I have basically been more of a brick wall than a fanfiction author since December of last year:  
- I travelled halfway around the world and was technologically isolated for over 6 weeks(no kidding, it was to see my Nana in the UK, and hopefully this experience will help my writing)  
- My computer was banned. Actually, it still is but I'm sneakily using it anyway.  
- This chapter was evil to write. **

**So, there are my pathetic excuses. You'll have to just bear them and read. Enjoy :)**

SUPASHAKES PRIVATE LABORATORIES, HAVEN

When Holly was passed out, she remembered her fifth birthday. In her dream she was dressed in green overalls, her short auburn hair gathered into a fountain hairdo on top of her head. Her mother, Coral Short, was baking in the kitchen, free from her marine work for just a few days. The smell of cake and biscuits wafted in lazy swirls from the open kitchen door, and a hidden speaker pumped out loud party music. Holly waved her arms along to it as a pile of presents gleamed temptingly from on top of the bookcase. Holly wondered what was concealed beneath the sparkly green wrapping, and her fingers itched to open them.

'Mummy?' she called, poking her head around the kitchen door. Coral stood by the oven in a pink tank and grey tracksuit bottoms, her hands enlarged by giant silicone oven-mitts.

'Yes, honey? Are you hungry? Or do you want presents?'

Holly grinned widely at the mention of the gifts. 'Presents!'

Smiling, Coral brought down the stack from the bookshelf and put them on Holly's lap, where she stared at them like she had just been given the world. 'Can I...?'

'Of course you can! Rip in!'

Holly still remembered how she felt as the paper fell away from the presents one by one – a game and music chip, a big picture book of the surface and the sea, and a framed picture of her and Coral at a theme park they went to a few years ago. She felt euphoric, safe, at home.

But then the dream was gone, wiped away into darkness. Holly was calling for her mother, but she was walking away into her inevitable fate...

* * *

'Mum? You have _got_ to be kidding me.' Opal Koboi swung her feet from a lab table, a pink vial in her hands. 'I was expecting you to start muttering "Artemis!" again. "Mum" is _so_ clichéd.'

'What?' Holly asked groggily, still recovering from her vision-like dream. Too late, she realised she must have been muttering in her sleep. 'Koboi._ What did you do to me?_'

'I just tested a little drug I've been working on,' she waved the glass vial in her hands, pink liquid bubbling and swirling inside. 'It makes people go loopy over the people they love. Way better than the normal knockout drug.' She put on a squeaky voice, 'Artemis! Oh Artemis, I'm so sowee! I love you more than the world itself.'

'I did not say that,' Holly scowled. She knew that Opal was just toying with her, trying to make her angry. So instead of looking at the pixie, she began to observe her surroundings.

She was sitting on a dog bed in the middle of a lab, surrounded by a glowing square on the floor. It appeared there was nothing between her and the deranged pixie. No wall, no force-field, no bars. But Holly knew better. There was probably some vicious surprise waiting for her if she tried crossing the line. The actual lab was white and chrome and glass, with no windows and fluorescent lights. Blueprints and promotional posters were pinned neatly to the walls, and rows of conical flasks indicated that Opal was up to something. Judging by the pixie's tall, round-eared appearance and pink schoolgirl uniform, Holly deduced that this Opal was from the present. And as far as she was concerned, Opal had to go.

'Nice uniform,' Holly commented snarkily. 'Been kidnapping schoolgirls too?'

'Soon, you will wish you had never been born.'

'Ooooh,' Holly said sarcastically. 'Are you going to tickle me to death?'

With a screech of annoyance, Opal strode out of the room. 'You'd better watch it, _Captain Short._'

Holly sighed in relief, then hooked her fingers around Artemis's present. It was about the size of half a fist. Checking it was concealed from the cameras that were dotted around the room, she pulled at the ribbon, fingers shaking. She tore at the paper to find a box inside, and in that red tissue. Buried in the tissue was a glimpse of gold, and Holly's breath caught in her throat as she tipped it out. Lying in her palm was a small, gold locket.

**POLICE PLAZA, HAVEN**

Mulch Diggums was having technical difficulties. He clutched two wires in his hands, weighing up the chances of him electrocuting himself. With a resigned sigh, he pressed the side of his neck and Artemis' agitated shouting filled his ears.

'... crying out loud Mulch, listen to me! You are doing it all wrong! Why can't you...'

'_Shut up, _mudboy! I'm trying to work here!'

An exasperated sigh fizzed in Mulch's ear. 'Working on blowing yourself up, more like.'

'Well if you're so clever, tell me what to do.'

'I have been!' Artemis protested. 'I've told you to plug the transistor node into the yellow socket, then connect...'

'In plain gnommish,' Mulch grumbled, 'none of this transistor geekspeak.' He glared at the two cables, wondering what would happen if he pressed them together. No doubt something highly painful. 'And besides, wasn't this just meant to be a _small _favour?'

Diggums stood in a small rectangular cave, his feet sinking into the soft brown clay. Technically, he should have felt at home in a room of lush dirt, but wires snaked around the room, buzzing with friction. Normally Mulch would be quite happy trying to cause a Haven-wide power cut, but his methods generally involved a hacksaw whereas Artemis seemed far more interested in making the task as confusing as possible.

'It _is_ a small favour. You just aren't listening! Look, forget about it. Just meet me on the McGraney farm, one field over from Tara shuttle port.'

'No "thank you, Mulch. You're the best, Mulch"?'

'Maybe some other time,' Artemis said and terminated the call.

'Doubt it,' said Mulch and began to tunnel towards the surface.

* * *

FOWL MANOR, DUBLIN, IRELAND

Butler stretched out on the sofa, a fiction book in his hand. His eyes scanned over the pages, but he was no longer reading the words. Something was different – strange, unusual. And every fibre of his being told him it had something to do with Artemis.

Hauling himself up from the Butler-shaped dent in the cushions, he tossed aside the book and ran up the stairs. He resisted the urge to knock before entering Artemis' room, and threw the door wide open. The room was a mess – papers were scattered in irregular piles and laptops were left open with programs still running. There were only two possibilities – that Artemis had left in a hurry, or he had been taken by force. It didn't take Butler long to weigh up the probabilities.

With a final glance at Artemis's bedroom, Butler shut the door and continued reading.

MC GRANEY FARM, TARA SHUTTLE PORT

Artemis waited by the hillock which concealed Tara shuttle port for over an hour. Of course, it wasn't unusual for Mulch to be late, but he could already feel himself growing impatient. The dwarf was integral to his plan. Typically, this always seemed to be the case.

So when a furry head poked out of the soil, Artemis wasn't in the best of moods.

'Where were you?!'

'Hey, mud boy, calm.' Mulch shook off and buttoned his bum-flap. 'It was just a few minutes...'

'How many, exactly?'

Mulch checked his monometer then gulped nervously. 'Forty five minutes human time... For god's sakes Artemis, you sound like a worried housewife.'

Artemis stepped right up close to Mulch, just as the dwarf realised how tall the boy was getting. Artemis grabbed the mud covered fairy by the shoulders and stared at him through dark blue eyes. 'We have to go. Now.'

Mulch made one last attempt at a joke. 'At least you were only telling me that – for a moment I was worried you were going to kiss me.' Expecting a laugh, he was caught off balance as Artemis pinned him against the ground. As much as Mulch was used to lifting heavy objects, Artemis was a dead weight.

'You know what, Mulch?' Artemis said, his voice like ice. It was the voice he hadn't used for ages, and it felt sour in his throat. Cold, calm, unforgiving. 'I don't care if you don't want Holly to live anymore.' He stood up, keeping Mulch pinned to the ground with his foot. In one movement he brought out a neutrino, only jet black with the solar panels removed. 'This is a neutrino – only it has been modified.' He pointed to two prongs protruding from the nozzle. 'The prongs out the front act as a high-powered buzz baton. One shot is strong enough to knock someone out. The actual Neutrino has only one purpose, one setting. A five second shot is lethal. I don't want to have to use it on you.'

Artemis took the pressure off Mulch and helped him up. 'You see, Mulch, this isn't a joke. If I don't intervene, Holly WILL die.'

'How do you even know she's alive? She's been declared dead for months now.'

Artemis sheathed his weapon and showed Mulch his ring fairy communicator. 'On Boxing day I gave her a locket. Nothing special, just a nice gesture, but concealed inside it is a communicator not dissimilar to the one on my ring. Now, the second the locket were to be opened, my communicator would beep. Which is what happened about a month ago, when I was sitting in my study. If Holly had indeed burned up in the magma chute, the locket would not be able to form a solid shape, never mind send out a transmission. _That's_ how I know she's alive. To rescue the locket, someone would have had to rescue Holly.'

Mulch gaped. 'You gave her a locket? God, you _are_ soppy' At sight of Artemis's expression, Mulch flinched and changed the subject. 'What are you going to do?'

Artemis smiled grimly. '_We_ are going to break into Opal Koboi's lab.'

* * *

**Ah, back into the old writing routine. Also, in honour of my imaginary 'do-something-nice-for-the-author-of-this-fanfiction-day', please review. I'm not forcing anyone but I want to reach my goal of getting 30 reviews for one chapter XD.**


	18. Blood and SupaShakes

_SOOOOO SORRY! I can't believe I haven't updated for so long, since March I know :( And now I feel really sad because everyone's probably forgotten the storyline by now...So I'll do a quick recap. Holly has been captured by Opal, as we all know, and Artemis is out on a quest to find her. I still recommend you read Chapter 17: Locket so the chapter flows a bit better, but it's down to you. Anyway, I do not deserve to live with the amount of time I've not written, but school's out now so I'll try to get as much done as humanly possible. I'll also try to work on my poor abandoned other AF fanfiction._

_Before I start, I have to admit I have been dragging out this story a lot more than I should have, so I'm going to try to get it finished a little simpler. To tell the truth, the title isn't even relevant anymore, but never mind..._

'No, don't...'

The figure ran about helplessly as the pixie fixed it on the crosshair viewfinder. She lightly squeezed the trigger and the man fell, blood puddling around him.

'Human video games are fun!' Opal Koboi smiled derisively as the screen exploded with more figures to shoot at with the wireless controller. She aimed at a pale man with black hair. '_Bam_,' she mouthed as the figure crumpled. Holly, who was watching from her mini prison, hoped it was just coincidence the computerised man looked spookily similar to Artemis.

A familiar pang in her chest arose once again. It wasn't really Artemis that was the problem – she'd survived without him for months at a time and could keep it that way. She missed him, and hearing his voice was now a long-forgotten luxury. The thing which was driving her to the edge was actually boredom.

It hadn't taken her long to figure out what the small box in which she was sitting was. Opal had described it as a LaserCage , an invention she had designed back in the days when she was a free fairy. The general idea was to use the invisible lasers commonly found in bank security systems to surround the criminal, or in this case, Holly. Only these lasers varied slightly from the usual harmless alarm triggers. As Opal had taken great pleasure in mentioning, they had the power to slice a fairy to ribbons before they could even begin to say "D'Arvit".

Holly suddenly hunched over as a jolt of pain shot through her. She wasn't sure what it was, but her insides felt like snakes. Biting, poisonous snakes. All she could put it down to was being cooped up for so long. She looked sadly at her food, sitting in a dog bowl in a corner of her cage. Opal seemed set on squashing her dignity as much as possible.

'You need another toilet stop, Short?' Opal asked, biting into a chocolate truffle with great malice. 'I should give you a kitty litter tray, matches the dog bed.' She roared with laughter, even though nothing was particularly funny.

Holly could see the madness slowly eating at both Opals, both so absorbed in their evil plans they were beginning to drive themselves into the ground. They both seemed to have a roster going, so Holly was always guarded closely by at least one of the Opals. In their eyes shined a certain incurable insanity as they taunted Holly with their video games and promises of unspeakable evil.

'Maybe I should use the bathroom,' Holly allowed herself a small smile. 'Otherwise you never know, I might have an _accident.'_

Opal shuddered before tossing a half-eaten truffle back into the chocolate box and standing up. She was smaller in stature than Present-Opal, her ears still pointed. Despite this, she still made a menacing figure, especially with a large gun tucked in the crook of her arm.

'You know how this works, Short. Struggle and you're dead. I won't hesitate to shoot – you know that.' Holly nodded. The only reason the Opals had kept her alive this long was to plan a grander death and watch her loved ones suffer.

'Yes Opal,' Holly sighed.

Opal took a controller out of her pocket, pressing a small blue button. The remote beeped twice in confirmation, and Holly stepped out of the square. A minute later and Holly was crouched in the windowless toilet recycling cubicle, her hands spread in front of her, trying to summon the last drops of her fading magic. She could feel it niggling at the back of her skull, but it wasn't enough. She would have to do it the manual way.

With bated breath she flipped open the locket Artemis had given her. It made the faintest beep, and a small blue light lit up. She pressed the single green button nestled in the middle where a photo would normally be kept. Somewhere up above, a communicator began to ring.

'Quit messing around, Mulch.'

Artemis fumbled about with his communicator ring as he felt it go off; almost dropping it in the damp Irish soil. He had begun to feel something he thought would be impossible – hope. _Holly was calling him_. Then his blood stopped cold. Unless Opal had found it. Please, please not Opal.

'Hello?' He said tentatively, his heart racing. _Please, please, be Holly..._

'Artemis?' Artemis couldn't speak. It was Holly, she was alive. In danger, but truly alive. He had guessed she might be, but he still almost collapsed in shock. Artemis almost rushed out with all the things he had to say to her, but he held back. It could be Opal with another deception up her sleeve.

"Captain Short. Two things you know about me that no one else does. Quick." He heard her sigh at the other end.

"Er...You wear red Armani boxers?"

Mulch burst into laughter while Artemis turned bright red. 'I didn't know stripping was a pastime of yours, Artemis', Mulch grinned, showing two large teeth. Artemis turned red and threw much a dirty look.

"Artemis, we haven't got enough time for this. Opal will get suspicious if I stay in here much longer. We have to be fast."

Artemis knew he should make sure it was Holly by asking more questions, but Holly, if it was indeed her, was right. They simply had no more time. He found himself turning to Mulch for affirmation, who nodded. Opal's madness was always strong to the point of almost tangible, and Artemis's calculations told him Opal was past the point of no return. The person he was talking to was sane, that was clear. Therefore it had to be Holly, there was no other explanation.

"We have a lot to do, Holly, and very few resources."

"You may not have resources in that sense, but you have Mulch," said Holly. "He's all the resources you'll ever need."

"Awwww, I'm flattered," said Mulch.

"Don't overdo it, stinkbreath," Holly quipped. "And no, no medal."

"Damn," Mulch said, but he was grinning. "Either way, I can get Mudboy and I down there in no time."

"So, do you have a plan, Genius?" Holly asked.

'I say...' started Mulch.

'NOT you, Mulch, you actually have to think about more than just eating and flatulence before you deserve the title of 'genius'. I'm talking about Artemis.'

'Hey, well it was worth a try,' grumbled Mulch. ' At least I can walk ten metres without tripping over.'

'Holly, Mulch, we haven't got time for this. We can't be sure what Opal's next move is, and have to get down there NOW. Holly, there's a tracking device on your locket, we'll use it to find you. Just keep it away from Opal, ok?" Artemis glanced at the coordinates on the locator then passed it to Mulch. "Now, if you see _anything_ suspicious, try to notify us. Opal has a plan, I know it."

"Captain Short!" screeched Opal from outside the door. "I don't care if you're constipated, you've spent too long in there. Out, now!"

Huddled in the recycling cubicle, Holly closed her eyes and thought over all she'd heard from the Opals over the time she'd been there. It was about a week ago she'd heard the Opals whisper when they thought she was asleep. They mentioned a date, she was sure of it. And something else. Holly's eyes widened as everything clicked.

"Artemis! I know what the Opals are planning! It's..." Before she could finish, the recycling cubicle door crashed open, and Opal grabbed Holly roughly by the shoulders. 'The Supashakes,' she managed to whisper into the communicator before it was grabbed by Opal.

"Have you been _talking to your friends?" _Opal raged. Holly watched in horror as Opal hurled the small locket into the recycler. She knew exactly what would happen to it – carried away with all the foul smelling fairy waste to a recycling plant where it would be used to nourish the soil.

Artemis and Mulch stared in shock at the communicator. It seemed Holly was now in even graver danger than before, and they hadn't even moved from the surface. Artemis wrung his hands, trying to shake off the worry. The only thing they could hope for to save Holly now was Opal's melodramatic nature. He knew she would rather hold on to her for a death as brutal and exaggerated as possible. Mulch didn't hesitate, shocked into seriousness.

'We have to get into the shuttle port,' Mulch said. 'Now.'

'We do?' Artemis replied, looking at Mulch quizzically. The dwarf's eyes held a strange glazed look, and his ears were pricked up as if listening for a distant sound. 'What is it, Mulch?'

'I stole a sound enhancer from Foaly's lab once, it improves your hearing tenfold. I can hear what's happening in the shuttle port.'

'And that is...?' probed Artemis. He allowed a rare smile as Mulch gave his answer.

'Hooves.'

Ten minutes later Foaly, Mulch and Artemis were all crammed into a shuttle pod, trying to find a way of moving without hitting each other. It was cramped, but as Foaly had quickly explained, he was the only one who could control the pod without crashing it into the chute wall.

It hadn't taken Mulch and Artemis long to find Foaly. As Artemis had suspected, Foaly was certain of Artemis' innocence and had left the shuttle port accessible just in case. Artemis, of course, had just planned the day Foaly was at the surface for repairs. As soon as Foaly had saw Artemis he shooed away his assistants and organised an emergency shuttle to the surface.

'Explain, mudboy,' Foaly ordered, gripping the controls. 'We don't have much time, but if you're as smart as I think you are, you'll have guessed Holly's still alive.'

'Yes,' replied Artemis crisply. 'I guessed you might know too from the chute sensors, we've been in contact with Holly since. She's in more danger than ever before. Opal has her hostage, we just managed to get the coordinates of the location before communicator became fertiliser. Such a waste.'

Artemis passed Foaly the coordinates, and the centaur tutted sadly.

'It's in the industrial area of Haven, typical,' he shook his head. 'It's bad news around there, not many cops spend their shifts hanging around on those streets. At any rate, we would have been able to break in if you weren't the most wanted man in Haven.'

'Haven't you got enough evidence to convince the council I didn't kill her?'

'No, unfortunately not. I tried, I really did.' Foaly sighed, wafting a smell of carrots around the cramped pod. 'You two have to do this alone. I can get you down there, but that's probably the most I can do. The rest is all yours.'

Artemis loosened his collar a bit. He was getting a bit claustrophobic.

'May I ask you two favours, Foaly?' Artemis asked. 'Can you do a chemical check on the 'Supashakes'? Holly mentioned Opal may have something to do with them.'

'Definitely,' Foaly agreed. 'And the other favour?'

'We need something for the break in.'

'What exactly?' Foaly asked nervously. Images of guns and flame throwers came to mind. 'Nothing dangerous?'

Artemis smiled. 'A pair of insulated pliers and some silver duct tape.'

'Why silver?' Foaly asked curiously.

'Oh, no reason,' said Artemis, a faint smile playing on his lips. 'I just like the colour.'

Foaly, Artemis decided, didn't get as much credit sometimes as he deserved. How the centaur managed to sneak a now very tall human past the entire LEP police force and the chute security still remained a mystery. Artemis briefly pondered it in the undercover police cruiser on the way to Opal's new headquarters, but his large brain still couldn't get around the details. So he quickly turned his mind to other more pressing matters.

Breaking Holly out of the lab was going to be near impossible, but Artemis' plan seemed like the best option. Discreet and non-invasive techniques were no longer possible. The only way to freedom Artemis saw was chaos, and lots of it. As the buildings became larger and more ragged, Artemis twitched in anticipation. It was going to be a long night.

Holly coughed, acid rising in her throat. She was no longer in the laser cage – the Opals seemed to have decided that she was too painful to look at. So she sat in the cold basement, shivering as her temperature dropped. It wasn't only her cell which was the problem, she was sure. It had to be more, she had been feeling sick all week. And the stomach pains, that snake feeling, kept returning.

Another thing had been bothering her too. The Supashakes™ had been mentioned by the Opals, and Holly was scared of their popularity. What if the Opals had poisoned them? They could wipe out half the city in a day. The chemicals in them could do anything...

Realisation dawned on Holly and she collapsed on the ground, staring at her shaking hands.

_Of course. The food. They've been testing it on me. I'm their test case._

It all seemed so clear now, Holly felt taller, and her limbs constantly hurt. It wasn't lack of exercise, it was growing pains. Holly desperately searched for one last drop of magic in her, probing to the very depths of her being. But nothing was there.

_Opal isn't poisoning them. The formula in those shakes isn't deadly. It's turning us all into humans._

Holly cried out as the formula gripped her in a final bout of pain, and she slipped into unconsciousness.

_Author's note: THANK GOD, I finished that chapter. Now, I promise to write at least another chapter before Christmas as exams are almost finished, so keep a look out. ALSO, I'm really scared I've lost all my reviewers, so please send me a message to tell me you're all still there? :( I know I've been a very bad person leaving you all so long, so please forgive me and let me know you're still reading :D  
(Please? D: )_


	19. Plan by Plan

"_'Cause I see the storm getting closer__  
__And the waves they get so high__  
__Seems everything we've ever known's here__  
__Why must it drift away and die?"  
_~ Estranged, Guns N' Roses

**POLICE PLAZA, HAVEN**

No one found the confident elf who walked into Police Plaza at all suspicious. With a light cotton shirt and an attractive face, he was waved straight through the front checkpoints by Lili Frond. He winked at her as he walked past, causing her heart to jump.It was rare for a clean male elf to come through police plaza, and good-looking ones were even less common. She quickly abandoned her post and followed him, keeping out of view. She waited eagerly behind one of the tall pot plants the council had grudgingly bought for the main lobby.

The room was deserted, which was unusual but not unheard of. Thanks to the long running goblin-dwarf turf war, most officers were currently breaking up the Fireball vs. Food fight in West Haven. Lili peeked between the glossy leaves, observing the handsome stranger curiously. She wondered what he was there for, hoping he was a new cadet. He looked interesting, with his attentive green eyes which showed clear intelligence. Lili couldn't wait any longer.

'Can I help you?' she asked, almost tripping over her own feet. The stranger looked not at all surprised to learn he had been watched.

'Sure,' he grinned. 'I was wondering where the Commander is at the moment?'

'Um...' Lili hesitated. Last time she had seen Trouble he was rushing out with a mobile reconnaissance crew, on the way to West Haven.

'Or is it top secret?' the elf chuckled. He shook her hand. 'I'm with the council, don't worry. '

Lili relaxed. Sure, he looked far younger than most of the old codgers in the council, but no fairy would lie about being in such a high up position. He seemed friendly too. "Commander Kelp is in West Haven at the moment," she informed him with a smile.

'Ah yes,' he nodded. 'Sorry, I'm fairly new to the council, do you think you could possibly direct me to the operations booth?'

Lili pointed down a corridor obligingly. 'Fifth door on the left, do you want me to inform Foaly?'

'No!' the man said abruptly. 'I mean, that's quite alright, thank you'.

'Okay,' replied Lili, but his sharp reply had confused her. She suddenly became on full alert, instincts kicking in. 'May I ask your name?'

'Magnus, Spikkle Magnus.'

She watched attentively as he strode down the corridor and turned to Foaly's operations door. Heart pumping and hands shaking she followed him once more. One of Foaly's techies opened to his knocking.

'And who might you be?' the young techie asked. Spikkle didn't answer the techie, just pushing straight past him. Lili gasped as she saw a gun outline through the material of his shirt. Foaly looked up from a large v-screen, hurriedly removing safety goggles. His eyes narrowed.

'You.'

'At the risk of sounding clichéd, hello Foaly, we meet again.' He turned and pulled out the gun, firing two bursts at Lili's chest. The techie dived for cover, narrowly missing a fatal shot to the head. Lili collapsed on the ground, magic struggling to repair the damage to her heart. She was no academic, but knew it wasn't enough. All that could help her now was a medical warlock, or maybe just a miracle.

**OUTSIDE SUPASHAKES FACTORY, INDUSTRIAL HAVEN**

**STAGE ONE**

Artemis and Mulch were dropped off by the undercover police cruiser a block away from Opal's Headquarters so as to not arouse suspicion. It was imperative Artemis was not spotted by the numerous security cameras dotting the Supashakes™ factory. But they had an advantage – security outside the building was minimal. Artemis had anticipated the likes of DNA cannons and pressure sensors, but realised Opal would want to keep the premises as inconspicuous as possible.

The two friends crouched behind an industrial waste bin, concealed from sight. Their plan had to be perfectly executed, and they had managed to retain temporary connections with Foaly through a private network. It wasn't much, only audio, but it would have to do.

'Ok, Fowl, do you know what you're going to do?' buzzed Foaly's horsy voice through the earpieces. 'I can only help you so much, I have no visuals.'

'Yes,' replied Artemis calmly. He knew what he had to do. The modified Neutrino sat comfortably hidden, the weight of it reassuring him. All he had to do was pull the trigger. Then it could all be over. He took a deep breath. 'I'm ready.'

'Mulch?'

'I'm ready too,' Mulch grinned, giving Artemis a glimpse of some very brown-looking teeth.

_Next Christmas I shall buy him a toothbrush, _Artemis decided._ A very large toothbrush._

'Good,' said Foaly, sounding relieved. 'We are running some tests on the Supashakes, by the way. So far it has come up clear, though. No dangerous substances to be found. Are you sure that's what Holly said?'

'Yes,' Artemis snapped.

'So it's either the drink Holly was talking about, or a popular dance move of the 80's,' Mulch joked to blank looks. 'You know, the super-shake? That dance move...Oh, never mind.'

Artemis frowned and ignored Mulch completely, lost in his own thoughts. 'Foaly, can you run a few additional tests? I have a hunch. And you need to ban the sale of the Supashakes.'

'I'll try,' Foaly said, but he sounded doubtful. 'But this is a major company, Artemis. I doubt the council will allow it to be shut down without evidence. I can't see what Opal could be doing. The shakes certainly don't contain any toxins.'

'So it's all down to us then.' Artemis brought out the modified neutrino sadly. He knew what he had to do was going to haunt him for the rest of his life. But Holly kept him going. The thought of the Opals trying to harm her made his blood boil. He checked his wristwatch and tried to manage a smile. 'Time to get moving.'

It took Mulch two minutes longer than expected to climb the stone wall of the Supashakes factory, to Artemis's annoyance. Unlike the Chinese shopping mall the walls were made of a porous concrete which was difficult for Mulch's pores to stick to, meaning Mulch had to regularly stop himself toppling. All Artemis could do was watch with concern as the dwarf gripped on for life. After a heart-racing few minutes he reached the top and began checking for cameras. There was only one lone lens panning the roof, easy enough. Mulch kept to its blind spots then stripped two of the wires with his teeth.

It is another little-known fact that dwarf spittle is an excellent conductor of electricity, so good in fact it is commonly used in circuit boards as a natural substitute for metal solder. With this in mind Mulch spat on the exposed wire, effectively short-circuiting the camera unit without setting off the built in klaxon. Mulch quickly moved to a squat metal box, sitting exactly where Artemis had described it. With a thumbs-up to Artemis, they moved on to where all hell and chaos began.

**STAGE TWO**

Artemis moved briskly, Foaly's voice in his ear.

'You need to find building 128A and 126, they're on either side of the Supashakes factory and completely abandoned. There's a recycle bin near it, and once the fire starts you'll have about twenty minutes to find Holly.'

'Are there any other exits?' Artemis enquired. 'We need to cover absolutely everything.'

'That's all the blueprints show at any rate,' Foaly murmured. Then, 'You.'

'You?' Artemis asked, confused. Suddenly came the sound of gun bursts, then silence, then static. 'Foaly!' Artemis called into the white noise, but there was no response. Now on his own, Artemis located the recycling bin and prepared to rummage through it.

Artemis recoiled at the stench emanating from the bin, drawing up his sleeves with disgust. Grabbing three glass bottles with as little retching as possible, he fed old newspaper and one of his cascade fireworks into each of the bottlenecks, making sure the fuses hung out, ready to be lit. The plan was idiotic, rushed, foolhardy, but their only chance. Artemis looked at his watch and waited for Mulch's signal. He held the first bottle and lit it.

_I wish my PE lessons would come back to me, _he pondered as he looked at the half-open window. _Oh wait, I never actually attended any._

Mulch's signal was a simple thumbs up, but it was all Artemis needed. With an uncharacteristic grunt he hurled it through the window. Or rather, through the window had his aim been any good. Instead the bottle just ricocheted off the window frame, firework landing harmlessly in a puddle at his feet.

'D'Arvit!' Artemis cursed. He only had two more fireworks left, and he had two buildings to do. More carefully this time he aimed the bottle, gritting his teeth in frustration. This time he was successful, lobbing it through the gap to have it shatter on the other side. The fire quickly caught the paper alight, rolling into a fierce blaze as the old wood floorboards fuelled the flame. Artemis quickly moved on to number 126, simply shoving the bottle through the parcel letterbox. Artemis began to panic when nothing happened.

'D'Arvit,' he said for the second time. All the factory warehouses were arranged in a constant string, interconnected by old iron doors. If these doors weren't blocked it would be possible for the Opals to escape elsewhere, and that would be highly detrimental to Artemis's plan. He was almost on the verge of trying to find a new plan when the fire finally caught. With a sigh of relief Artemis went to prepare for stage three.

_Minutes earlier_  
**OPAL'S LABORATORY**

Both Opals had contented themselves with a game of Swear Toad as the clock crept slowly closer to 6pm. It was a vulgar card game, yes, but it was entertaining and settled any worries of failure.

'D'Arvit' the Opals cursed simultaneously as the lights flickered out and they were settled into darkness.

'Power cut, the imbeciles at maintenance must have screwed it up,' spat Present-Opal.

They both frowned as the sound of smashing glass plagued the street. It was normal for drunken youngsters to be wandering the streets at night and causing havoc, but an odd smell had begun to form in the air. 'It must be the air purifying units,' Past-Opal reasoned. 'The power surge may have blown a fuse.'

Stumbling comically they felt their way to the one-way window overlooking the street. Flames licked across their vision.

'D'Arvit!' Present-Opal swore again. 'The LEP are onto us.'

Now would be a good time to point out the clear differences between the two Opals – whereas both were driven by greed and revenge, the Opal of the present was far more mentally disturbed than the past. Paranoia had developed to the point of complete insanity, and everything hinged on when this would break loose.

'It's just a couple of teenagers,' Past-Opal muttered.

'It's the LEP! They know everything! There are bugs everywhere, they're all over us,' Present-Opal stumbled in the dark frantically as if brushing insects off her clothes, the only thing lighting the room being the flames outside. She suddenly spun, eyes blazing. 'You're with them too!'

Past-Opal recoiled. 'Are you crazy? You _are_ me!'

'You just want all the glory! You're here to steal it! You're not actually Opal Koboi, _only I did this._ Only I could create a plan this intricate!'

It took a few seconds for Past-Opal to realise what was happening. With a rising sense of fear she realised what it had come to. The few strands of sanity holding Present-Opal's mind together had broken, and the burning building yielded no escape. Except the front door, of course. So Past-Opal made a run for it. It was at this time Artemis' plan came to fruition.

As Past-Opal ran through the invisible LaserCage which once held Holly Short, her body was – as she had described herself – shredded. In the end it all came back to the time paradox, the impossible nature of time. If Past-Opal were to be killed, how could the Present-Opal exist? And if the Present-Opal didn't exist, how could the past one die? Artemis knew this, knew Present-Opal would eventually try to kill her past self out of greed and confusion. Both Opals were highly ambitious and could not cope with sharing the glory, even with themselves. As a paradox was impossible – it defied the laws of logic – Artemis knew it would snap back on itself, going back to its original state. Within logic it was the only possible solution. Past-Opal would be returned alive to the past with no memory of ever going into the future, leaving Artemis with one less deranged pixie to deal with.

The remaining Opal stared in shock at where her past self had vanished, unable to comprehend what she had just seen. So her mind took the only route it knew.

'It was all an illusion.' She muttered as she made her escape.

**STAGE THREE**

Dwarves weren't lovers of fire, and Mulch Diggums was no exception to this. Yet he still found himself willingly crawling into a burning building just to save his elfin friend. He had cut off the power feeding the building just seconds before, so all he had as guidance was his beard hair. Which was perfectly sufficient, as it turned out.

Artemis had been reluctant to let Mulch do all the saving, but knew that it was vital for the plan. He was needed outside, and knew Mulch was far more capable than he was when it came to breaking and entering.

Mulch felt his way along corridor after corridor, working his way down the storeys. His beard senses were heightened enough in the dark to know that the top floors were unoccupied – he could feel no footsteps, hear no voices. The air was beginning to become thick and heavy, something which Artemis had reassured Mulch wouldn't happen.

"The building is completely sealed, and any airflow through the ventilation units are filtered," he had said. "The air will remain perfectly clear unless someone opens a door or window."

This didn't make Mulch worried, as he assumed it would have been caused by one of the Opals leaving the front door to meet their fate. It wasn't until he reached the ground floor that he became wary. There were no more noises to be heard at all, not even in the lower levels. Even though he had no way of knowing for sure, Mulch knew the building was empty. A quick scour of the building amidst the smoke showed this to be true, there was no Holly or Opal to be found. When Mulch burst out the front door Artemis tensed and relaxed, then tensed again.

"Where's Opal?" he asked in confusion. "Or Holly?"

"I thought they had left through the front door!" Mulch objected. "The building is completely empty."

"It can't be," Artemis said, almost looking panicked. "It isn't possible, are you absolutely sure? Maybe I should go in there."

"No," Mulch said firmly. "There's no one in there, they must have got out some other way."

"I thought there was a possibility of that happening," Artemis frowned. "Can you follow them?"

Mulch felt the ground tentatively. "Yes, or for some of it anyway," he said warily. "I can't guarantee anything though, there could be a rock bed under the clay."

"It's our only chance for now," sighed Artemis as Mulch happily unbuttoned his bum-flap and dug a shallow hole which he climbed into.

Suddenly the ground shook, making Artemis stumble.

"I didn't do that, I swear!" Mulch protested. "My flatulence still has its limits."

With that Mulch was off before Artemis could say any more. But he didn't need to; Artemis had not forgotten the way Foaly had just simply _stopped _talking_. _ So he waited, knowing the next step of his plan.

Suddenly a big hand closed over his shoulder.

"Butler," Artemis said. "We have to get to Police Plaza, now."

The ride to Artemis had been rough for Butler, involving lots of coordination by Foaly through the wafer transmitter Artemis had planted in his book. The shuttle pods of course were far too small and cramped, and Foaly had seemed rushed, needing to go back to the operations booth quickly. Another police cruiser had been sent out to drop Butler off, once again too cramped for his large frame. This was the one they travelled back in, Artemis filling Butler in on what had happened.

It took a while for Artemis to notice who was driving - no other than corporal Grub Kelp, who was looking even more nervous than usual. Sweating and shaking, not good signs.

"What is it?" Butler asked. "Grub?"

The vehicle wobbled slightly on the magnetic road, then stopped. Grub turned to face the humans.

"Haven's been taken over," he said. "Shortly after Butler and I left, there was a massive explosion near Police Plaza. They don't know if there are any survivors, people are fleeing the city."

"Foaly's either been taken hostage or killed," Artemis said bluntly. "We have to move now."

"No," Grub trembled. "I'm not going near there. It's a warzone."

"Corporal Kelp, your brother is out there fighting for his people, you should do the same."

"But Mummy said..."

"Please Grub, do it for Haven, for the People."

The elf sighed and the vehicle was moving once more, speeding towards the mass of fighting they once called Haven.

_Okay, okay, forgive the song reference at the start. I couldn't resist, I really couldn't :P. And it fitted with the whole Haven being overrun thing...sort of. At least I have more of a plan of where the story's going now, only a few more chapters left, eep!_

_Sorry about not keeping my promise of updating before Christmas, that's just me, sorry D:_

_Update soon, read and review please :D Just so I know you're hanging in there ;)_


End file.
